


The Hidden Continent

by Arigatomina



Category: Naruto, Yu Yu Hakusho
Genre: Crossover, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-14
Updated: 2018-12-14
Packaged: 2019-09-18 02:57:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 28,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16986831
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arigatomina/pseuds/Arigatomina
Summary: Drawn by the energy unleashed between Naruto and Sasuke, strangers have come to Konoha. Their interest in Kyuubi isn't nearly as disturbing as where they claim to be from





	1. 1

**Author's Note:**

> Timeline: For Naruto, this takes place days after Sasuke escapes Konoha. For YYH, this takes place a few months after the end of the series.  
> Age Discrepancy: In this fic, the kids graduated from the academy at fifteen rather than twelve. That makes them about the same as Yusuke was at the beginning of YYH.  
> Category: Naruto-Yu Yu Hakusho crossover, Yaoi, TWT  
> Warning: This fic will have smut, violence, and drama with a sprinkling of crack.  
> Main Pairings: Naruto x Sasuke, Kurama x Hiei

The trail was easier to follow than they had expected. Had they started at the actual point of impact, they probably could have saved themselves a good deal of effort dealing with the snake. Even without a helpful guide, they could sense the energy wafting over the valley. The cracks and debris in the surrounding cliffs were saturated with it, a deep creeping residue that no amount of rain would wash away. Even the pool itself, replenished by the waterfall that continued to pour into it, was seeped with the smell and feel of opposing powers mingling in the muck below. One, perhaps both, had hit the muddy floor of that pool and left his mark as clearly as they had on the statued cliffs. A tracker with any skill had merely to stand at the base of that valley in order to track both essences.

The path through the forest was more clouded, mixed with scents and signs of strange energies and scarring battlegrounds. That vibrant energy which had painted the valley a thick red was faint on this path, compressed and hidden as if the owner had been near death. Perhaps near birth was more accurate. The snake hadn't been forthcoming, but they had gotten the distinct impression the demon wasn't considered much of a threat, or a temptation, either. Whatever was binding it had managed to mix its essence until they were following the signs of battle and travel, rather than the youki. Even the human's scent was nearly undetectable the further they went from the valley. Perhaps they had both been bound, making the unleashing of that power all the more noticeable when they had finally clashed.

There were watchers in the forest, the closer they came to that faint but undeniable youki signature. Humans in hiding sparked through the foliage like fireflies on a river bank. They avoided them for convenience more than anything, the same way they avoided the clear paths that twisted to connect this village to the one they had first arrived at. While the hidden humans might have been guards of some sort, the ones who traveled those open paths were weaker and unaware of their presence. They had no plans to start a panic, so it was simpler to avoid these travelers. They skirted the paths and made a round of the village walls, staying at what they deemed to be a safe distance. At this point they were aware that these humans couldn't be dismissed as quickly as their instincts suggested. If the demon could suppress his presence so well, there was no guarantee the guards were as powerless as they seemed. They were being cautious.

They were being too cautious, really. What should have been an hour-long trip had turned into half a day's worth of scouting and it was annoying to waste so much time. They hadn't learned anything, and at this rate, their guide would wake up and complicate things before they even entered the village. It wasn't as if they really had anything to worry about. Even if the humans proved to be more than their reiki implied, all it would take was a single pulse of energy to switch realms. They did have Reikai approval for this mission, after all.

A burst of impatience and simmering annoyance brought the quicker of the two out of hiding. Hiei dropped from the canopy and landed in a fluid crouch on the path below. Gates in that surrounding wall opened here, giving a perfect view of the strange civilization within. Two men were standing guard on the wall, to either side of the gate. They jerked with alarm at the sudden arrival and a sigh sounded from overhead as Bui also dropped into sight.

"This wasn't the plan," said Bui.

"I don't care," Hiei sniffed back. "I don't feel like sneaking in. It's a waste of time."

Hiei turned a burning, yet somehow bored, glare on the alert guards, who were now watching them tensely. Their hands were hidden, likely reaching for weapons of some sort, or perhaps communication devices. They hadn't exactly learned the extent of the technology these people had access to.

"We have something of yours," he called up to the men, in an annoyed and bored tone. "Bring your ruler, king, or whoever has the power here."

The two men exchanged looks and muttered to each other from across the open gateway.

Bui frowned and shifted the body hanging over his shoulder. "Sounds like they have a different chain of command here," he said quietly. "We'll probably be taken to a squad leader of some sort. Some of the words are strange..."

"At least they speak Japanese," muttered Hiei. He rolled his eyes a moment later, sensing a handful of those fireflies approaching from behind them. "Watch your back. We'll be in a mess if one of them dies."

Bui turned and waited for the men to show themselves. He blinked at the white animal masks they wore, porcelain, or maybe even plastic. That was different. Still, he kept his demeanor as unaggressive as possible and gave what he thought was an acknowledging nod. If the people here were anything like the last ones they had encountered, they would threaten them verbally before attacking. Until then, he was content to follow his commander's lead. One of the men approached and gestured to the boy he was carrying. He stepped back in response and glanced over his shoulder at Hiei.

"Go ahead," Hiei shrugged. "He belongs to them. As long as they don't kill him, it's not our problem."

Bui nodded and handed the boy to the masked man. He caught the man's wrist before he could step away and nodded to the eyes of the white bird-like mask. "You heard that, right? If you wanted him dead, you should have caught him yourself. We can't be responsible for his death."

The masked man twitched visibly, but whatever expression his face had twisted into was hidden from sight. Bui was starting to wonder if they understood him at all. His Japanese wasn't nearly as good as Hiei's, and the humans here mixed far too many foreign words into the language. The man tilted his head down and Bui realized he had squeezed the human's wrist tighter than he had meant to. He winced and released him quickly. If he didn't know Hiei would have laughed at him, he might have offered some sort of apology. It just wasn't appropriate to apologize for threatening someone too forcefully.

Hiei, who was still facing the guards on the wall, jerked his head upward. "Your leader?"

"I'll report this to the Hokage," said the masked man Bui had accosted. He did something with his hand and disappeared in a small cloud of smoke.

Hiei twitched and shot a wide-eyed, exasperated, look over his shoulder at the spot where the man had stood. Every time he decided the humans here were just like their Ningenkai counterparts, they did something excessive to prove otherwise. It made no sense at all. If they could teleport, why the hell had the tracks from the valley shown a mess of them chasing each other through the treetops? And how could they have the technology to teleport when they didn't even have airplanes? Not even the demons had found a way to teleport without relying on inborn talents and blood magic. Teleporting was expressly a Reikai skill.

Hiei was more annoyed now than he had been a few minutes ago. Bui could tell from the simmering rise in his energy. He winced a little and kept his back turned. His gaze shifted over the four masked men who were still blocking the path as if afraid they might attempt to escape the village. He got the impression they weren't going to answer if he asked them anything, so he just stared at them. Their clothing was simple enough, cloth and leather and metal, no less advanced than anything found in the two realms. Three of them had small blade-like weapons attached to their outfits and all had packs and sachets strapped to their hips, thighs, and vests - to conceal more weapons, he supposed. Aside from the masks, and the fact that they were entirely human, they were no different from the people they had seen at the last village.

Well, there was one other difference. One of the masked 'men' was a woman, and they hadn't seen any women at the other place. But she was bound and dressed just like the men, so he thought they probably weren't supposed to notice.

At least the woman explained where the boy had come from. The impression they had gotten when they encountered the snake was that these 'humans' ran in entirely adult male packs, living in underground lairs with a strict competition between the members. If this village had females, there were bound to be children as well, leading to a recognizable - and less disturbing, honestly - civilization. He had begun to wonder how these humans had survived for so long if they were all like the ones they had first encountered. While the guards didn't appear very competent by demon standards, it made sense that they at least tried to protect their village when there were groups like the snake's stealing or luring off their children.

They perceived the masked man's return more than they had his departure. There was a tiny flare of energy somewhere in the midst of the village, the sensation of it approaching in an impossibly fast wave, and then he appeared in the same sort of smoky cloud he had disappeared in. How ever he was doing it, it was not some form of excessive speed. His energy literally dissolved, traveled, and reformed in the new location.

"The Hokage will see you."

The masked men surrounded them, leading the way. Hiei didn't appreciate their assumption that proximity was safer than not. If he hadn't sworn to be on his personal equivalent of 'best behavior', he would happily have flashfried the men for flanking him so closely he couldn't help but smell every old bit of sweat, blood, and foliage on them. The reek of recent sex on one of them was enough to make his eyes water. Blegh. Humans.

.-.

The hospital room was so quiet the curtains brushing the windowsill sounded louder than the occupants' breaths. A concentrated, studious aura floated over the bed and congealed along the pristine ceiling, mixing with the dust where the yellow light shone down. Cloth brushed over skin, a brief warning before the small black stone clicked on the board. A growing noise droned louder and erupted into a frustrated groan.

"What part of this is supposed to be fun?" the blonde boy in the bandages asked. "You said you were gonna teach me how to play - not kick my ass just for the hell of it!"

A sigh drew out from the black-haired boy sitting by the bed as he leaned over to collect the white stones he had surrounded with his last move. "I am teaching you. If we were actually playing, I'd have beaten you ten minutes ago. You didn't want to play Shogi, so we're playing Go. This is shidougo - it's a teaching game. Why do you have to be so bothersome?"

"Me?" Naruto blurted. "You're the one who's supposed to be entertaining me! I'm the one stuck in here. What did you come for? So you could have all the fun and I'll be even more bored out of my mind? Some friend you are!"

Shikamaru sighed again and cast a martyred look at the door behind him. "I wish Chouji didn't sleep so much. I never have to work this hard to entertain him. Then again, if Sakura would visit her teammate once in a while, I wouldn't be stuck here listening to this..."

Naruto jumped in the bed, bristling and ignoring the vague twinges where bandages dug into his shoulders. "Oh! That's just great! Throw it in my face, why don't you! I thought you came by to make me feel better, not worse...!"

"Mendokuse..."

"Fine, then!" Naruto growled. "If I'm such a bother, why don't you just go. Leave me here to rot all by myself, see if I care!"

Shikamaru glanced back with a slightly interested expression on his otherwise bored face. "Really?"

"Erm..."

Naruto glowered at his friend. He knew full well that Shikamaru would do it. Shikamaru kept saying he only came to the hospital to see if Chouji was awake enough to want company, but he was pretty sure the boy would have visited him even if his own teammate were already released. He was like that. No matter how 'troublesome' he said visiting him was, he still came by a few times a day. But the second he had an excuse to leave without feeling guilty, he would leave. No questions asked.

"I guess this game's kind of interesting," Naruto said sullenly. "We could at least finish this match..."

The other boy turned back in his chair and resumed his resigned slump over the board and the bed. "It's your turn, then."

"Yeah, yeah. I just hate playing when I already lost."

He glared at the board, squinting his eyes as if that might make it easier to see where to place his stone. As far as he could tell, this game wasn't any easier or fun than Shogi, but it was still better than sitting by himself and feeling horrible. Jiraiya had given him a week to 'rest up' before he could go off and start training to get stronger. As long as he was stuck in a hospital bed, unable to do anything but brood and be miserable, even playing a game he had lost from the beginning was nice. And it was nice that he had at least one friend who cared enough to visit. He didn't blame Sakura for avoiding him. She had smiled at him the one time she had stopped by, but he knew all he did was remind her of Sasuke. It was probably better that she didn't force herself to stop by or they would both be miserable.

The sound of footsteps running past the cracked door caught Naruto's already wandering attention. He looked up curiously and appreciative of the distraction. Shikamaru had sworn the others were out of danger, so he knew the fuss couldn't be about them.

"Want to see what's up?" he asked eagerly. "Sounds big!"

Shikamaru shot him a look that asked if he really had to, and pushed back his chair. Naruto might as well have asked him to clean his toilet, for all the eagerness and interest he showed. Even his pace was slow and reluctant. He poked his head out the door.

"Well?" Naruto urged, after waiting a minute in impatient silence. "Come on! I'll get griped at if I get up again. I can't even open the door without one of those nurses threatening to drug me up. Like I'd actually use the door if I wanted to leave, anyway. That's what the window's for. Moron doctor-people."

Shikamaru pulled his head back in and shut the door behind him. He turned and folded his arms over his new chunin vest, a concentrated expression drawing his brows together. Seemingly oblivious to how close Naruto was to exploding with curiosity, he thought for a moment before speaking. "Anbu. Two of them are guarding one of the operating rooms, another near the stairs. It looks like they brought in someone critical and important, or dangerous. I should probably go see what it is..."

"Yeah," Naruto groaned in exasperation, "that's the point of being a chunin, you know! You just stand there when you could be helping. I can't believe they advanced someone like you. They gotta be crazy."

"I thought the same thing," Shikamaru sighed. "I guess I'll go, then. See ya..." He waved a hand and turned, sluggishly unenthusiastic, to the door.

Naruto let out a semi-explosive sigh. Not even an emergency right outside his room could entertain him. It wasn't fair. He was healed enough to get out of here - had been since yesterday. Sure, he had used up his chakra and he still felt like he had been rolled over by a super-sized Chouji-ball, but he had Kyuubi's inexhaustible reserves and instant healing. Why the hell did he have to be stuck in a hospital bed? He had already promised not to go running off after Jiraiya caught him the first time. He could be waiting in his apartment just the same as he was waiting here, without the nurses hanging over him.

Hushed voices passed his door. He was sure he recognized one of them, but since he couldn't even peek into the hall without getting a nurse-from-hell on his case, he didn't bother moving. He cleaned up the Go board and set it on the chair Shikamaru had been using. Then he stretched out and flopped on the bed a few times, as if proving to himself that he was fine enough to move around would make him feel better. He was half hoping Shikamaru might come back and tell him what was going on. It wasn't likely, though, since that would mean more trouble for the trouble-allergic boy.

A vague breeze, every bit as bored as he was, twitched at the curtains. And Naruto shivered in surprise. It felt as if his stomach had just flipped over. That wasn't it. Even without diving into his subconscious mind, he knew it was Kyuubi coming to attention. He squinted at the window and offered a tentative thought to the fox locked away inside him. The response was so violent he would have pitched over if he had been standing.

A wave of chakra hit him, threatening to burn the thin sheet covering his legs. And he could swear the psychotic fox was trying to numb him to the point where it could take over like it had when Sasuke had nearly killed him. He closed his eyes tight and hissed at the thing, anger and shock helping to mask his sudden fear.

'What the fuck! Stop it! What's wrong with you, you stupid fox!'

He didn't go deep enough to actually see the bars holding Kyuubi at bay, but those burning eyes were bright behind his eyelids. And he could feel the chakra shifting around him, trying to con him into crouching in that animal pose it had used during that far too recent fight. The excitement, hunger, and overwhelming need had his hands curling into claws on the open window sill. If he hadn't been wide awake he just knew he would have leaped out the window without a moment's hesitation.

'God damn it, I said stop! What is it? What? Say something!'

His head tilted back and he inhaled a waft of that warm air. He hadn't meant to do that, and that fact scared him more than Kyuubi's mindless silence. Could the fox control him even when he was awake now? Had letting it free to attack Sasuke made the seal useless? It couldn't be true. He was still inside the room. Kyuubi wanted him to jump out the window and he hadn't done it, so...so he had to still be in control...

Whatever was in that breeze, it made Kyuubi's excitement double until the burn was a physical pain in his stomach. One of Naruto's clawed hands tore free of the window sill and wrapped around his waist.

'Stop it. If you don't tell me what's wrong with you right now, I'll - I'll do something. I don't know what I'll do, but you won't like it one bit! Are you trying to kill me? You'll die, too, you know!'

The chakra didn't lessen, but the burn eased until it was slightly more tolerable. It was enough for Naruto to open his bleary eyes to the calm sunlight outside his room. There was nothing outside, just the open yard in front of the hospital, and the low wall that separated it from the town beyond. Everything was quiet and calm outside, in stark contrast with the chaos Kyuubi was stirring inside him.

'Can't you smell that? Feel it?' Kyuubi growled in his mind, the words coming in bursts of air as if it was difficult to even speak.

'No!' Naruto shot back, his panic settling into frustrated anger. 'What is it? What's wrong with you?'

'Demons, whelp. Pure...Alive...and here! Right here! Reeking of the snake and your boy. And mine! My kind. I can smell it! I haven't smelt that in...not since...'

The chakra pulsed around him, and Naruto cringed at both the sensation and the soul-splitting cry in his mind. He blasted back as loudly as he could.

'Get control of yourself! There's Anbu in the hall, you moron! Do you want them to come in here and see me like this? They'll think you're loose and they'll kill me...! You want that, stupid fox? You'll die, too! And what do you mean, demons and my boy? Make sense, damn it!'

'That boy is here, the demons brought him here, he's all over them. And one of mine. It's faint, but I can smell it there! They're right here - now! Go! If the snake sent them you want to go, don't you? That's what you wanted! To find the boy and kill the snake? This is your chance! And mine...! They must know I'm here. If they're with one of mine, they'll run and your body is too slow to chase them. They can't escape! Go now! Stop fighting!'

Naruto's eyes widened and he shot a sudden look at the door of his hospital room. Kyuubi's uncontrolled chakra made a reddish orange shroud in the air around him, but he ignored it. The footsteps. The Anbu keeping guard on an operating room.

'Snake,' Naruto thought sharply, 'Are you talking about Orochimaru? And Sasuke? Sasuke's here? Here-here, like in the hospital? Right now?'

'Yes! Now go! They're moving...closer...'

If Kyuubi was distracted by the smell outside, Naruto was distracted by the idea of Sasuke being inside. Surely he would know if someone had brought him back. Shikamaru definitely would have come back and told him if it was Sasuke they had brought in. Even if Shikamaru didn't know, Kakashi would, and he would have come and told him, right? Or Sakura? Sakura! She would be so happy...! He had to know for sure. So what if the nurses threw a fit when they saw him outside his room? If Sasuke was back, it didn't matter. He wouldn't even have to stay at the hospital if he didn't have any reason to go leaving the village to hunt down his runaway teammate. But...Sasuke? Who would bring him back here? And so quickly, too...

Kyuubi was throwing a royal fit inside his head, complete with thrashing and yowling to the point Naruto wondered if he were actually a spoiled toddler rather than a semi-mature adult. Unless it was Orochimaru sneaking into the village to take Sasuke back again, he didn't give a damn who smelled funny outside. Anyone walking down the main way couldn't be sneaking in, anyway. He mentioned that to the scrambling fox demon sharing his body and received a blistering combination of words in some language he was glad he didn't understand

'You're giving me a headache, you know. And you're burning my sheets! Shit! They'll probably make me pay for it, too. And look what you made me do to the window sill! Oh, you rat-bastard, you. Do you have any idea how many missions I'd have to do to pay for this? C-rank ones! I'll be living off Iruka-sensei for weeks! And he already threatened to cut me off if I pulled any more expensive pranks...! Maybe we'll get paid for chasing after Sasuke...we didn't succeed, but if he's back anyway, we should get something for the trouble. Yeah! That was a hell of a mission, too! No way can Tsunade-baachan get away with not giving us anything for it...!'

'...you absolute idiot. If I could kill you, I would relish it.'

The surprisingly quiet growl caught Naruto by surprise, and he scrunched one eye in a doubtful expression. He couldn't remember ever hearing Kyuubi sound so much like Sasuke and, frankly, it was disturbing. He didn't want a big scary Sasuke impersonator in his head.

'What's your problem, anyway?' Naruto scowled. 'Even if there were demons around here, what makes you think they would come walking right through the center of town? Stupid fox. You're the only demon that's ever been in Konoha. There's no way something as big as you could get anywhere near here without everyone knowing about it.'

The response was pure acid. 'You know nothing about demons, whelp. They are here. Go after them. I'll take you there! Deny me this...and you will never use my chakra again. How do you like those terms, whelp? I may lend enough to keep you alive, but you'd be nothing without me. Try summoning or rasengen on your own chakra.'

'You...! You can't cut me off - you owe me! I let you live in me! If you're living in my body the least you can do is share chakra!'

Despite his outrage, Naruto imagined himself without Kyuubi's energy. All of his most powerful techniques and recent advances relied on having that bottomless well to draw from. Even Jiraiya had said that his strength was his endurance, that he had so much more chakra than normal people. Without that...

The malicious grin was audible in Kyuubi's sleek response. 'You can go back to being dobe, usuratonkachi.'

'Shut up!' Naruto cringed. 'Shut up! Don't you ever call me that! I won't listen to that from you - you're supposed to be on my side...!'

'Then give me this. You owe me. If they get away...if you don't give me this...then...'

Naruto opened his eyes and winced from the brightness of the room. Kyuubi's voice had trailed off. He could almost see the fox demon tensing, tails rising in a sudden mix of apprehension and eagerness. No, not almost. He could see it. The chakra around him was shifting, tightening and thickening into that tailed outline it had taken just days ago. And damned if that tail weren't lashing over the edge of the bed and burning the hell out of the formerly white sheets.

'What is it now?' demanded Naruto. 'What? You're not even gonna finish your threat? Did they leave? Or did you figure out that you were just imagining it to start with and there's no one to chase, you idiotic fox?'

'...no chase, whelp. He's coming to me...'

"What!" yelped Naruto. He jerked away from the window and twisted so he could keep an eye on the door. "Oh, shit... If anyone sees me like this...!"

A shadow darted in the corner of his eye. Naruto reeled to face the window just as a dark figure appeared a foot away from him. Cat-shaped eyes glared bloody red out of a pale face, staring right at him. He was so shocked his mind froze on the thought that the person had jumped three floors to crouch in the open window of his hospital room. So much for Anbu members guarding the doors...

The intruder shifted his gaze, noting the fiery shape Kyuubi's chakra had taken. And Naruto choked at the sudden lurch of emotions the fox sent him. Adrenaline, hunger, frustration, rage, want, hope, and predatory lust hit him at the same time. It was the last sensation that sent Naruto careening off the edge of the bed.

Naruto groaned, grabbing his head with both hands. 'Keep your chakra, you perverted fox! There's no way in hell I'm giving you that...!'

.-.  
TBC


	2. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YYH Notes: For those who don't recall, Bui is the only surviving member of Team Toguro in the Dark Tournament arc - the tall green-haired guy in ridiculously heavy armor who Hiei smeared the floor with by using his mastered kokoryuuha. All of the other surviving demons from that arc were later recruited by Kurama for the Makai tournament, so it always annoyed me that Bui got left out. I can only assume Kurama was still mad Bui helped Karasu play with his hair that time. ;p Still, Bui is the only opponent in the entire tournament that Hiei didn't kill, and he actually asked Hiei to finish him off. That should count for something. I have a fondness for the idea of him joining Mukuro's ranks after the series and working alongside Hiei. She would need a number two in command with Shigure gone, anyway.

Two chairs sat empty and unwanted in front of the Hokage's equally abandoned desk. Thanks to the easily manipulated nature of genin students, there was no dust or cobwebs to show how rarely the room was occupied. It was the most empty and defensible room in the Hokage tower, far enough from Tsunade's real office to ensure no damage would be done to important scrolls and files if a guest happened to get out of hand. The room was reserved for especially suspicious and potentially dangerous guests, so it was rarely actually used. Still, the walls were marked to allow spying while still being thick enough to protect the nearby chambers. It might not have been used often, but it had been tested more than once by groups of junior ninja in need of chakra-control lessons. So far it had managed to survive without more than a few scratches and dents.

The Anbu had stationed themselves outside to allow the strange guests a chance to feel unobserved. They weren't, and they seemed aware of it. Instead of taking the less than comfortable chairs, they separated with one near the far wall, the other close to the door. They never moved or spoke from the time they were first escorted in, until Kakashi entered a few minutes later.

Although he had retired from the Anbu force since taking the teaching position for Team Seven, Kakashi remained on good terms with the masked men guarding the chamber. He might have missed seeing the smaller of the strangers escape their guard earlier, but he could tell from the overly rigid way the white hawk stood that his old friend was smarting over the slip. That put him in a rather amused mood and made him smirk at the quick-footed stranger as soon as he had shut the door behind him.

Sharp red eyes flicked to him for a brief shuttered look. Then they turned back to the wall. Kakashi was curious to note that the smaller male was leaning right where a window had been before the chamber had been modified into a potential holding cell. Not only that, he actually appeared to be looking out the no longer existent window. Yes, he was certainly a strange one.

He was quite possibly shorter than Naruto, with thick black hair swept back into a flame. White strands formed some sort of star shape in the front, and thicker black strands fell down to partially cover the white band wrapped over his forehead. He was dressed in a long-sleeved black cloak that made him look every bit as young and slender as Kakashi's own students. A baggy white scarf completed the look, making his face and too-wide red eyes appear even younger still. If he hadn't seen the guy leap out a three story window without being so much as winded, Kakashi would have dubbed him a strange looking child with age-old eyes.

The other stranger had stepped back when he entered, and was now standing a few feet to the left of the door. Aside from the fact that his short hair was pale green in color, and he had an odd grayish-blue mark on his forehead, he looked perfectly normal. He was tall and broad-shouldered, and appeared to be in his late twenties. His dress was slightly unusual in that his midlength coat was lined with diagonal straps and spiked metallic plates over his shoulders and forearms. It was strange compared to the smaller one's complete lack of armor or visible weaponry, but Kakashi had seen foreign guards decked out even worse than that. No, other than his unusual hair color he was definitely the normal one of the two. At least he continued looking at him when he noticed Kakashi's one-eyed gaze. No learned shinobi would be so foolish as to turn his back to a stranger.

"The Godaime will be here as soon as she can," Kakashi offered, with a faint smile that was only really visible in his crinkled eye. "That little scene at the hospital wasn't a very timely distraction."

"Godaime?" the tall man repeated.

"The fifth Hokage," said Kakashi. A vague blink of pale blue eyes answered this, and he smirked a bit wider behind his mask. "You two really aren't from around here. I'm Kakashi, and the Hokage is what we call our leader. She's also the best medical nin we have right now, so she won't be coming over till she's done with Sasuke. From the looks of him, it might be a while."

"Bui," the man nodded.

The dark one turned away from that windowless wall and nodded as well, though he didn't look especially interested in the formalities. "Hiei. Is Sasuke the name of the youko's host?"

"No," Kakashi said slowly, raising an eyebrow. He sidestepped the issue of Naruto and his overly enthusiastic parasite and focused on the more peculiar detail. "From what I'm told, you two were the ones who brought Sasuke back here. You didn't get his name when you picked him up...?"

"He was unconscious," said Bui.

They didn't even know what was wrong with him, aside from the youki burns the fox demon had left. Those marks were what had drawn them to the snake, the nearest sign of demons they had found. They had immediately been accused of being more of 'Konoha's shinobi' hoping to 'take back' their young 'missing nin.' Bui knew he had missed most of the threatening and mocking exchange that had followed, what with the strange words the humans had thrown in. But the basics were clear - they had gone to the wrong place.

As for what had followed, Bui still wasn't sure it had been a wise move. They could have backtracked the boy's scent without actually bringing him along. It wasn't like Hiei to voluntarily involve himself in human issues. He could only assume it was because of the snake. Neither of them had been particularly taken with the thing. Stealing his toy was the worst blow they could deal him since the Reikai forbid killing anyone who was even partially human. That was the trade that came from cooperating with Koenma. No killing humans. In exchange, they had a quick means of avoiding fights by simply switching realms.

Hiei glowered as he remembered how easily they had found their own way once they had reached the valley. The original idea was to use the boy, who was fairly saturated with youki from the recent clash, the same way a hunter would any item that reeked of the prey. Actually getting him had been a hassle, and, he now admitted, more trouble than they needed. He had gotten some satisfaction from the snake's shocked face when they opened a portal to the Reikai, but it only lasted a few seconds. Now he didn't know whether they had done a favor for these people, which would make them more cooperative in appreciation, or if they had merely brought back a convict, who, since they couldn't be responsible for the death of a human, they would have to protect from his own people.

Everything would have been so much simpler if Koenma had just put them down in the valley to begin with. Incompetent infantile godling.

The silver-haired man with the cloth mask was looking at him again. He probably thought they didn't notice the energy radiating from his hidden eye. Why else would he keep looking directly at him when his turned back should have made it clear he wasn't interested in talking? Hiei glared a little and turned to face him. "We didn't know there was a clear trail from the valley to the walls of this village. Why do your people leave tracks over the ground when you can teleport?"

Kakashi blinked. A funny expression took over his face to the point where even his mask couldn't hide the wide smile. He couldn't decide if Hiei reminded him of Sasuke or Naruto, and that was just funny. Funny, like a 'flying shadow' taking out a shadow-manipulator. Ironic didn't begin to cover it.

"Ah," Kakashi breathed, beaming at Hiei as if he were a confused and belligerent genin too new to know better than to ask him a question. "Teleportation is very limited, you see. If the chakra control isn't just right half the village would be picking shinobi strips out of their hair. That's assuming there's an invitation to arrive at all. There was this missing nin one time, who tried to teleport into Konoha in secret, and he arrived with his foot in a cat. Wouldn't have been a problem since it was a stray, anyway, except the rest of him ended upside down in the roof the cat was sitting on. They had to take the whole roof off, and you just know those kids had nightmares for weeks, seeing that head poking down over their beds like that."

Hiei blinked.

Kakashi nodded sagely. "Then there's the departure itself. I remember this one kid, had an invite and the hand seals, but I guess his heart just wasn't in it. Actually, I know it wasn't, because he left it behind. I hear they managed to put it back in him, but between you and me, I think they just said that so the rest of us wouldn't get discouraged. After what happened with the woman who tried to bring her nin dog with her, there were a few walk outs during the training. Now that was a sight. It takes some real skill to teleport with a passenger. There was this one time-"

Outside the room, looks were exchanged between the Anbu members standing watch. Tsunade had certainly picked someone who could keep the visitors occupied until her arrival. Whether or not Kakashi was the best someone to do the job was another matter. The Godaime was known for her age-defying endowments and medical skills, not her decision-making. Anyone who would send a newly advanced chunin and a handful of genin to face a squad of Orochimaru's best fighters couldn't be expected to get to know her subordinates before assigning tasks. Unless she had just wanted to torture the visitors with Kakashi's lie-laced storytelling. Tsunade seemed to be a little sadistic for a Hokage.

.-.

Naruto woke to the soft sound of a damp finger running lightly over stretched cloth. The first thing he noticed was the silent calm coming from his literal inner demon, as if he had fallen asleep after Shikamaru's visit and just had a strange and vivid dream. Somehow he didn't think he would be that lucky. He avoided any thought that might rouse Kyuubi and slowly opened his eyes to the familiar hospital ceiling. Well, somewhat familiar. He was in a different room. A room, he quickly noticed, without a window.

"Awake, then?" the man writing on the floor asked, without glancing up. "Don't sit up too quickly, or you'll disturb the wards. You can wear this once I'm done."

"Iruka-sensei?" asked Naruto.

He lifted his head a little and blinked dumbly at the scroll draped over his shoulders. The writing was strange. And smelly. He panicked when he realized why.

"Ack! This is blood! Is it yours? Neh? Iruka-sensei! What happened? Are you binding me? Why! Did I do something? What-"

He had leaned as close to the side of the bed as he could without disturbing the draped scroll, hoping to catch his old teacher's attention. He blinked when he caught sight of the person sitting against the door behind Iruka.

"Hey," Naruto blurted. He was immediately glad he hadn't asked about Kyuubi. But judging from the way his friend was scowling at him, he had more things to worry about. "What happened to you?"

Shikamaru scowled over Iruka's head, the older chunin being currently occupied on the floor between him and the bed. He might have been angry about his bandaged nose, but considering a faint scowl was his normal expression, no one could tell.

"I tried to help," Shikamaru muttered. "My mistake."

Iruka finally looked up from the vest he had been writing on. He sent a sympathetic smile to Shikamaru. Then he stood and gestured for Naruto to sit up slowly so he could slip the vest on the boy without the scroll slipping down too far.

"You had a visitor," Iruka told Naruto. "According to Kakashi-sensei, it was a very unusual visitor. The - er, your chakra...reacted badly and you...well...it seems you..."

"Fell out the window," Shikamaru finished.

Naruto gaped at them both.

Iruka gave a weak shrug. "This seal should keep your...chakra...from getting out of control again. I understand Kakashi-sensei designed something similar for Sasuke once. It relies on you, your determination to keep your 'chakra' from consuming you. Since this shouldn't be a problem once the visitor leaves, we thought a removable seal would be best. You're relieved of missions for the time being, so it shouldn't be a problem."

"Uh...okay," Naruto said slowly. "So...how did I fall out the window? The last thing I remember is this weird guy showing up on the window sill."

Iruka glanced back and Shikamaru sighed at having to describe the event yet again. He had already had to tell Kakashi and Tsunade, and then Iruka, and he would probably have to tell Ino because he knew Chouji would tell her as soon as she visited him and she always had to get the direct scoop on any gossip. He was really wishing he hadn't decided to tell Naruto about Sasuke's return. He should have known there was a reason the Anbu were looking at the door to Naruto's room instead of keeping watch on the hall.

"I was stopping by to give you some news," Shikamaru said reluctantly. "As soon as I opened the door, your chakra hit me. It was worse than that purple-black chakra Sasuke used during the exam, except it looked more like fire. Someone must have put a seal on your room, by the way, because I couldn't feel it at all from the hall. Anyway, I came in just as you were jumping for the window. I didn't know there was someone else in the room. I used shadow bind to stop you before you could fall out. Then something moved. I thought it was a shadow, but I couldn't catch it. The next thing I know, I'm waking up and my face hurts like hell."

Iruka nodded and took up the story. "According to Kakashi-sensei, the visitor thought you were being attacked. He was planning to hit Shikamaru from behind and knock him out, but he turned into the blow..."

"I think he broke my nose," Shikamaru glowered. "I still don't see how he thought he'd be protecting you by letting you fall out the window. If you had hit your head, you could have died."

"Don't worry," Iruka said over his shoulder. "Your nose will heal just fine. The swelling should go down within the hour. The nurse who looked at you said you could come back if it doesn't and they'll fix it immediately. Your quick action was entirely appropriate and appreciated."

"Yeah, yeah," sighed Shikamaru. "I already got that from Genma-san. Commendable, if entirely pointless action befitting a chunin. Good for me. My nose still hurts. And Naruto still ended up falling out the window. Who caught him, anyway?"

"Another of the visitors," said Iruka. He turned back to take the scroll from Naruto, since he was wearing the vest in its place. "They were being escorted to the Hokage tower when, and I quote, 'the little one lit up like a black lantern and shot off,' with the other holding the Anbu back before following after. Apparently, the one you two saw was too fast for the Anbu to catch, and the other one formed some sort of green chakra barrier they couldn't penetrate. They followed them here just in time to meet the Anbu who had been stationed over the operating room."

He gave a faint smile to Naruto, who was gaping at him again. "You can expect Sakura to get wind of this and come to check on you. When she does, I'm sure you'd like to tell her the good news."

"G-good?" Naruto demanded, in a voice just shy of an outright wail. "What part of this is good? Visitors holding back Anbu? Anbu! I fell out a window, Shikamaru got beaned in the face, and that f-"

He bit off the last part, though he was dying to tell Iruka that the fox had warned him there were demons in Konoha. He couldn't say that in front of Shikamaru. But...demons! He hadn't gotten a good look at the red-eyed guy who had jumped to his window, but they had to have looked human if the Anbu were taking them to see Tsunade. What kind of demons looked like people? What? Were they carriers like him and Gaara? Kyuubi had gone on about them being 'pure', so he'd imagined giant animals stomping through the woods the way Gaara's demon had. Now he didn't know what to think.

But...if the fox were right about the demons, that meant...

Naruto straightened and leaned toward Iruka with his eyes wide and gleaming as if he had just spotted a steaming bowl of free ramen. "Hey! Iruka-sensei! Sasuke's here, isn't he! That's the reason the Anbu were in the hall, right? Well? Is it true? That those visitors brought him back here? Is it?"

A long sigh sounded by the door. Shikamaru frowned deeper and shoved himself to his feet. There was one more reason he shouldn't have bothered opening Naruto's door. He should have known someone else would have told the boy. He had been forced to run a few errands before he had gotten a chance to come back to the hospital, so it only made sense that someone else would have gotten there to spread the news quicker than he could. It figured. He didn't know why he kept setting himself up for troublesome and pointless endeavors. He had never figured himself for a masochist.

"There goes my news," he sighed. "I'm leaving now. I still have to write a report about this. It's a good thing Sasuke's back so you can get out of here, Naruto. Visiting you in the hospital is troublesome enough without it being dangerous."

Naruto barely paused to watch his friend leave. He had already latched onto Iruka's shoulder, almost shaking the man in his excitement.

"Then it's true? Come on, Iruka-sensei! You don't even have to say yes, just nod or something!"

"Yes, it's true," Iruka laughed. "He's here and under careful watch so he won't be slipping off again. But before you get too excited, he's in pretty bad shape and we still don't know if he was brought back willingly or not. He hasn't woken up, yet. I'll see if I can get Kakashi-sensei to sneak you and Sakura in to see him as soon as possible. In the meantime, we need to talk about what really happened today."

Naruto sighed and let go, his excitement fading the same time as Iruka's expression grew sober. He rubbed a hand over the gray sleeveless vest his teacher had put on him and wondered if the blood writing inside had dried enough that it wouldn't stain his white shirt. Even if it did, it was probably worth it if it meant Kyuubi wouldn't be howling in his head and making him do crazy things like jump out windows. Sure, he only owned two shirts, but it wasn't like anyone really saw them beneath his jacket. What was a shirt in exchange for silencing a psychotic fox, who was apparently gay as hell and in rut to boot?

"Those visitors were both guys, right...?"

Iruka blinked at the random question. "Yes, as far as I know. Why do you ask?"

"Erm, no reason," Naruto said, waving a hand. "Just curious. I think...I think they're like me and Gaara. It's kinda funny, if you think about it, how it's only us guys who end up like this."

Neither of them was particularly comfortable discussing Kyuubi, but Iruka found it especially difficult. He had been told things since Naruto's failed chunin exam. Kakashi had told him about the eruption in Wave, and the chakra signature that had blazed during his fight with Sasuke. Even Jiraiya had taken the time to tell him a few things about Naruto's seal, notably the fact that Orochimaru had countered it and effectively kept the boy from advancing without anyone noticing. That last detail had struck him the hardest. He had asked Kakashi to be tactful when addressing Kyuubi's presence in Naruto, so he blamed himself for the fact that the teacher hadn't noticed the sudden change. Naruto shouldn't have had to rely on a stranger to help him, just because his own teachers were too shy about Kyuubi to ask him if anything was wrong.

"It's okay, you know," said Iruka. "To talk with me about Kyuubi. It's okay. You don't have to hide things. Especially if you're...using his chakra in battles...or having him use you. You really don't remember trying to jump out the window. That was him, wasn't it?"

Naruto shied away, squirming a little and wishing there were a window he could look out instead of a blank wall. He had known he would get caught after that crazy chakra the stupid fox had been putting out. But why did it have to be Iruka asking about it? Kakashi should have been here, or maybe even Jiraiya. Yeah, like Jiraiya could actually be found and called in as easily as a stationary shinobi. Scrap that idea. It was all Kakashi, being lazy as usual, pushing the dirty work off on Iruka. He was probably standing on a roof somewhere reading that book of his. And people thought Shikamaru was lazy. He was downright ambitious compared to Kakashi.

"Naruto," prodded Iruka. "This may be informal, but I do need a report on your side of the incident. Since your handwriting is barely legible on the best of days, that will require that you actually talk to me."

"There's not much to say," Naruto sulked, squirming a little further from the edge of the bed. "The stupid fox smelled something, threw a fit about demons in Konoha, and then that guy was in the window. I fell off the bed and...I don't know. I thought I shut him up for a second there, but then that stranger said something. At least, I think he said something. He made some weird fast sounds like he was talking, but it didn't make any sense to me. I had my eyes closed from falling off the bed and yelling at the fox. And when I opened them I was here. It's like I blinked, or it was a weird dream. It's like I said, not much. The only thing I really got is that he said those guys were demons and they brought Sasuke back. Really, that's it."

Nothing, not even torture at the hands of an experienced Anbu like Ibiki, was going to make him tell anyone that Kyuubi had wanted to screw the living daylights out of the guy. After pinning him and getting a good taste of his blood. The imaginings the fox had sent him before he zoned out were seriously fucked up. There was no way he'd describe them to anyone, especially not Iruka. Just thinking about them...

Naruto lunged off the bed, ducking past his startled teacher. He managed a garbled apology on his mad dash for the adjoining bathroom. Additional seal or no seal, Kyuubi had woken up at his sudden remembrance of those images. He didn't know if the fox's interest was making him sick or aroused. Either way, he didn't want to be in that state with Iruka right next to him. There was only so much humiliation and emotional turmoil he could take in one day.

There was no chakra this time, but he could hear the fox as clearly as ever, ranting away in his head. He crouched down by the toilet and hissed back at it, very aware of how thin the wall was.

'Shut up - shut up! I wasn't taunting you, I swear! I just remembered. It's not like I wanted to think about it. It's your own fault for putting stuff like that in my head. I'm...I'm too young for this. Yeah! You're totally perverting my innocence. You're worse than Ero-sennin! I've never even kissed and you want me to-"

Kyuubi immediately called him on that lie, complete with a vivid recollection of the event. Naruto jerked back and whacked his head on the wall, more from the painful beating he had gotten from the girls in his class, than the horror he had felt at having accidentally kissed his rival.

'A girl! I've never kissed a girl! God, why do you have to bring that up? I didn't even think you were aware of things back then. Besides, even if you count Sasuke, which you can't because that was totally an accident and it wasn't even my fault - but if you did, that still wouldn't make me perve enough to let you use my body to rape some guy. Maybe if it were a really hot girl who was all over me anyway, and you just wanted some sex, then maybe. But you're into that bondage shit and weird-looking demons - guy demons, even! Why can't you be a normal pervert like everyone else? And what's with the biting? What? You want him to bleed to death so you end up doing a corpse? How sick can you get? Wait... Yeah, on second thought, don't answer that. Don't say anything. Just go back to sleep before Iruka-sensei thinks I died in here.'

Naturally, the fox demon ignored his belated order. 'Your cute little seal may keep my chakra in check, but that's all it does. Don't think you can defame me like this without reaping the consequences.'

Naruto sent a worried look at the door before closing his eyes again. 'Defame? What the hell are you talking about? You're the one who sent me the pictures! Are you trying to take it back?'

'To steal, dominate, and claim is a natural instinct. Even an untouched kit like you should know that. What I want is no different from you and your boy. How long have you spent trying to bring him to his knees? Since the snake sank his fangs into him first, your only thought was to steal him back. This is no different. That demon reeks of one of my kind. He came to me, knowing what I am. He dared to mock me because of this childish container I'm trapped in. Me! I've outlived him a dozen times over! When I find the pathetic excuse for a youko that allowed him to keep that taunting tongue of his, I'll-'

The latter half of the rant was lost on his host. Naruto's brain had ceased functioning at the idea of Sasuke on his knees. He had imagined that scenario so many times, his rival falling and him playing the part of hero. It was stock footage for his imagination to pull out any time he needed a reminder of why he trained so hard. Surpass Sasuke, impress Sakura, surprise Kakashi, and make his rival thank him for saving his life. It was a sacred image, his favorite daydream. Kyuubi had managed to desecrate it in a matter of seconds.

Deaf to the ranting that continued unabated in his head, Naruto stumbled out of the bathroom. He jittered a little, as if he needed to go to the bathroom and didn't realize he had just come out of the room he was so desperately seeking. Iruka met him halfway.

"I need to sleep," Naruto blurted, everything in his body language screaming nervous energy. "If I poke my head out the door, you think that ugly nurse'll drug me up again? Or maybe you could just hit me, huh? I really need to stop thinking, like right now. 'Cause if I don't stop thinking, I'm gonna end up chewing on the bedframe."

Iruka blinked slowly. "...the bedframe is made of metal, Naruto."

Naruto blinked back, his eyes wide and far too dilated. "I know."

.-.

Konoha's fifth Hokage was a beautiful blonde woman in her midtwenties with a body like a ningen supermodel, all hungry curves and unrealistic augmentations. The first thing Hiei noticed about her, besides the would-be provocative appearance, was the strange odor she let off. She didn't smell like a ripe woman in the middle of her life. It wasn't a strong or foul scent, it just struck the demons as being off, being wrong. If Hiei didn't know better, he would have sworn her appearance was some sort of illusion. He could see through illusions, so it had to be something else, just one more of those strange abilities these humans seemed to use so casually. He had already heard more than he wanted to about their 'teleportation' skills, without actually learning how they used them. He didn't bother to ask why their leader looked like a young woman and smelled like a grandmother.

Tsunade took her seat with a terse frown pulling her eyebrows together. She was tired from her time with Sasuke, who seemed to have reached a new level of stubborn ignorance. The seal he had been drawing on had definitely reached a new level or two. Just as Naruto had returned with considerable cell deterioration from using the Kyuubi's chakra so much, Sasuke's use of the seal had threatened to destroy his entire future as a shinobi. And she didn't understand that at all. Orochimaru wanted his body strong and intact, so why had he gone and given him a seal that would destroy his body if he dared to use it? They had recovered what was left of his other followers and seen firsthand the destruction those seals caused. She knew Orochimaru had no problem sacrificing men to get what he wanted, but she had never pegged him for an absolute moron. He couldn't exactly use Sasuke's body if he had to sacrifice Sasuke's body in order to get it...

She shook her head in exasperation and leveled a still-frowning stare on the two visitors. "It's hard to believe you two have only been here an hour, with all the trouble you've caused already. If you hadn't brought Sasuke to us, you'd be treated as enemies."

"About that boy," said Bui, who had deigned to take the seat across the desk from her. "Is he a victim or an enemy to you?"

Tsunade raised an eyebrow, curious that the man was asking that now, after he had already handed over the bargaining tool. "Possibly both. We haven't made any decisions regarding his case and we won't for the time being. Regardless, we do appreciate having him brought back. That's why I'm having this meeting with you. What do you want? And what village are you from?"

Hiei was still standing near the former window since he had refused to sit where he would have two Anbu standing guard directly behind him. Bui glanced at him before answering the woman's questions. Until Hiei decided he was taking too long, he would do the talking.

"We aren't from one of your villages," said Bui. "We're doing reconnaissance from a place you probably don't even know exists. That's why we're here, because until the clash in your valley three days ago, we weren't aware of your existence."

"I've heard of hidden villages before," Tsunade said, in a somewhat annoyed tone. "You're hardly the first to show up out of nowhere."

Bui shook his head. "That's not what I mean. This entire continent is isolated to the point where it can't be reached. What's beyond the ocean and glacier land that surrounds your villages?"

"More water and ice," said Tsunade, "and a few island countries. Are you saying you're from an island no one on the main continent has visited?"

"Something like that. This entire region you've inhabited is unreachable from the outside, nonexistent. We don't know how you've managed it, but there is a barrier that prevents demons from entering or even locating this region. Take the glaciers. If you walk toward this area from that side, the moment you step into the barrier you walk right out the other side - meaning an abrupt ocean. It appears entirely natural, no wards we could identify. It was the explosion of youki - your 'chakra' energy - that made us aware that something was here besides what we could see. We're here to learn more about this region - how long your people have inhabited it, how you've isolated it, and what sort of human civilization has grown here."

The woman was staring at Bui with a strange look on her face, as if she didn't know whether to laugh or try and make sense of his words. Hiei left the wall and moved to stand near her side. He was careful to stop when the Anbu tensed, leaving a few feet between them. When he spoke, it was slowly and sarcastically, the same way he spoke when he was forced to explain something to Kuwabara.

"These villages of yours and the continent they sit on are in the middle of the Makai. All humans were relocated to the Ningenkai centuries ago. The fact that you are here is in violation of every rule the Reikai has. Now that we know you're here, we may be forced to relocate every single one of you. If we can establish that the barrier you have in place will never come down, you may be allowed to remain. To do that, we have to know more about you. In exchange, we'll tell you about the worlds you've isolated yourselves from.

"You are intruders, trespassers, hidden in the middle of a world that belongs to demons," Hiei simplified.

Tsunade stared at him for a long while before leaning back in her seat. If her expression was a little more annoyed than usual, she couldn't be blamed. "I take it you don't consider yourself insane for saying any of that."

"No," Hiei deadpanned.

"I didn't think so," she sighed. "This has to be the most farfetched thing I've ever heard of." She glanced at Kakashi, who was holding quiet, smiling, vigile in the corner nearest the door. "And I've heard some wild ones."

"We can prove it," offered Bui. "The fact that you have demons here, even if it's only three that we've noticed, means this region was once open to the rest of the Makai. They had to have been here when it was originally sealed, so they would remember the details."

That sparked a reaction from the woman. She turned on Bui with a glare that was actually a bit daunting. "Are you suggesting we would take the word of Kyuubi on anything? Even if there was a way to communicate with that monster, no one here would believe a word it said."

"You don't need his word," Hiei shrugged. "We need his word, as well as the memories of the other demons we've sensed in this realm. All you need is a trip outside this bubble of yours. Currently the only realm this region is connected to is the Reikai. It seems the humans who've died here have been slipping in unidentified for centuries. Now, that connection goes in both directions. We can take you to the Reikai, a spirit realm, and from there to the Ningenkai - the world you humans should have been living in. We could show you the demon world your villages are planted in the middle of, but...I don't think you'd like it."

Whatever fantastic stories the pair had to tell, Tsunade admitted the little one demanded some attention. He grinned with that last sentence, a dark sneer that was far more worrisome than anything Orochimaru had in his collection. And he flexed his chakra just enough for it to be noticeable. The color was too similar to one of those cursed seals for comfort.

"I like adventures," Tsunade said casually, "when they have the chance of proving profitable to me. Unfortunately, I'm currently the leader of this village. I can't go gallivanting off at the moment. I'll have to take a raincheck."

Hiei scowled at the sarcastic smile she shot him. He had never liked females. Even the snake had given them more benefit of the doubt than that, and he had only been interested in marking them for his own use.

"I'm not doing anything," Kakashi offered from the corner. "I'll go."

Tsunade opened her mouth to shoot him down, but she hesitated a second later. The little one, Hiei, had tensed at the offer. Everything on his twisted face said he didn't want to take him anywhere. Ah. Her decision to have Kakashi entertain the two had been right on the money. They hated him already. Perfect.

"Good," Tsunade nodded to Kakashi, her brown eyes glinting with amusement that was echoed by the masked man. "Consider it a mission and report back to me with your findings."

She turned back to Hiei and let the smile reach her face. It came out a little more smug than she realized, but that was fine. "If his report is compelling enough, I'll reconsider what you've told me. In the meantime, I must insist that you avoid contact with Uzumaki Naruto until further notice."

"Who?" Hiei scowled.

"The boy you accosted in the hospital," explained Kakashi, with a wry smile. "We're not very receptive to people who ditch their escort to knock injured boys out windows. But we can talk about manners on our way to these worlds of yours. I'm curious, though. Don't you have to be dead to go to the spirit world? I hope you weren't planning to kill our Hokage just to prove a point to her. That's hardly the best way to convince someone."

Hiei's eyebrow twitched. Bui shot him a look, and he forced himself to stop clenching his hands. He couldn't kill the gray-haired man, no matter how much he really, really, would have liked to. He gave one more glare to the smug-looking woman. Then he sighed and turned to join Bui next to the smiling Kakashi.

The Anbu members proved themselves by darting in front of the Hokage the moment the air began to shiver around Hiei. They were the same members who had once watched, helpless, as the Third Hokage opened a portal to the spirit world and gave up his life to seal Orochimaru's hands. The portal Hiei opened was very similar in shape, but more fluid and natural. He had Reikai approval, after all.

He waited long enough for the formerly smug woman to look alert and shocked. Then he darted through, leaving Bui to latch onto Kakashi and pull him along. His eagerness to get this over with made him miss out on seeing the copy-ninja's smile get replaced by a suddenly wary and serious expression. He still heard the man's yelp when the portal closed behind them and Kakashi found himself in a seeming freefall above a foreign landscape. It wasn't as satisfying as killing him, but it was something.

.-.  
TBC


	3. 3

Koenma's office was day to the Hokage's night. There was little need for subterfuge in the Reikai, partly because normal visitors had no body to speak of, mostly because the man in charge was a God. True, he was an incompetent, infantile God-in-training, who didn't look nearly as good in his teenage form as he thought he did - according to Hiei - but he was still a God.

Aside from Koenma's 'human' appearance, the office was the same as it had been the last time Hiei had seen it, over three years ago when he was still working for the Reikai. Too bright, stark yellow walls that aimed for glossy but came out sickly and made for an uneasy lack of shadows, the eternally cluttered desk that took up half the wall and was piled with stacks of paperwork to be stamped before they toppled to the floor and had to be sorted all over again, and the blurred sheen of the projection screen between the desk and the door that left a decidedly uncomfortable tingly sensation when walked through. All things considered, Hiei preferred the stark cell-like mock-office the humans had used over Koenma's cheery little headquarters.

Koenma stood behind the desk. He had decked himself out for the occasion in his more appealing human aspect. His short brown hair was windswept despite the complete lack of wind, the long bangs dipping past the Jr emblazoned on his forehead and down toward seemingly deep, sober eyes. He was tall and dressed in comfortably loose blue, with a dark red cape that still reminded Hiei of the ningen comic Yusuke had shown him after first seeing the junior king's 'teenage' form. While Koenma did cut a better figure as a human then he did in his chubby baby-god body, the blue marble pacifier in his mouth destroyed any respectability his appearance garnered. Showy, incompetent, and oh so annoying.

"Glad to see you, too, Hiei," Koenma greeted.

It was interesting how clearly Koenma spoke with an energy-sucking ring recharging in his mouth. Interesting, like how he actually believed anyone could take him seriously with that ball bobbing in front of his face. Hiei didn't waste so much as a sneer on him. He stepped into the office, skirting the projection, and left the doorway clear for the two men following behind. "I think he's broken," he said, with a jerk of his head to the twitching human Bui prodded into the room.

Kakashi glowered faintly at the barb. He had figured out very quickly that this wasn't a trick the two strangers were pulling on him, and on Konoha by association. This was too elaborate to be an illusion, and they were way too casual about it all. Like the enjoyable freefall that had left him clinging to Bui like a leech. They could have mentioned the man's unusual chakra allowed him to do more things than just create barriers. Not that he would have believed a man could fly using his chakra alone. He wouldn't have believed a girl could fly on what looked like a boat paddle, either, but they could have at least tried to convince him. Their casual amusement gave him the impression the flight was nothing compared to what they had to show him.

The tour he had been given of the 'palace' had the same careless and casual air about it. They had led him in the front doors, which were easily twice the height of Konoha's walls, as if made to fit a giant. And they hadn't so much as slowed down when Bui prodded him right through the center of an enormous hall that appeared to be filled with humanoid monsters scrambling around like genin late for class. All he had gotten was a vague glance from Hiei, who called the creatures Oni like that explained everything. Surely if they were trying to crack his rational brain, they would have taken advantage of his confused and admittedly panicked response. It wasn't every day that he used the sharigan and hand seals to break illusions three times in the space of two minutes.

Koenma wasn't sure what to make of the wary and tired looking man Hiei had brought in. He was tall and lanky, dressed in black and dark blue with a high, open-collared vest of muddy green. His shirt rose into a cloth mask that hid his face from the bridge of his nose down. A wild shock of grayish white hair was held back from his face by a metal plated headband, and he had mismatched eyes, one black, the other red with an old scar from the eyebrow down. When he looked at that strange eye, the three black curls in the red iris rotated full circle. Weird.

Despite his funny eyeball, the man was definitely human. He was powerful, too. That didn't really come as a surprise, considering the man had entered the Reikai for the first time and walked right into his office without so much as freaking out. Oh, sure, he was a little twitchy, but he wasn't screaming like a girl or plotting ways to attack him. That put him above Kuwabara and Yusuke. For a human who had technically been isolated from all three worlds, he was handling this well. Now if Hiei would just prod the guy far enough into the room to see the projection...

On cue, that cue being Koenma's impatient shuffling and bug-eyed stare from him to Kakashi to the projection and back again, Hiei turned to look at the screen. What he saw made him roll his eyes and turn for the door. He would never understand why Koenma, who was essentially a toddler in his true form, was so preoccupied with buxom females.

"That's their leader," he said. "She sent him to see the Ningenkai in her place. Have Botan bring him to Yusuke when you're done with him. There's a youko over there Kurama should know about."

Koenma jerked a little, his eyebrows twitching inward at the impertinence. "Just a minute, now. You don't give orders here."

Hiei paused long enough to sniff at the demi-god's constipated face. "That's Mukuro's land they're on. Don't forget."

"Don't you forget who got you in there," Koenma glowered back. "I may not have control over Kurama, but Yusuke and Kuwabara are mine. Maybe I don't want them over there."

"Who said I do?" Hiei sniffed. "They'll show him the ningenkai. With Botan. He has no immunity to ningenkai sickness. You wouldn't want him going back and wiping out the entire population. Yusuke may have chosen the ningenkai, but he's still youkai. If you send him with me when we go back, that's up to you. But anyone you send will follow my orders there. The idiot couldn't follow me even if I wanted him there. Which I don't."

There was no point arguing with Hiei now that he had Mukuro to stand behind. Not that he stood behind her these days. Koenma didn't really pay that much attention to the Makai, but he had noticed Hiei was doing most of the work in Mukuro's place. Especially if it involved humans or the Reikai. As hard as it was to imagine, Mukuro had even less...people-skills...than Hiei did. Still, it was very annoying to put up with Hiei's attitude when just a few years ago the demon had been at his beck and call. That was what he got for letting Kurama talk him out of imprisoning the psychotic little menace when he'd had the chance.

Hiei was already out the door, talking in hushed tones to Bui. Koenma didn't bother to call him back. As annoyed as he was by Hiei's manner, he couldn't really argue with his point. The humans isolated in the Makai were like an island herd of inbred animals. A single human virus from the Ningenkai could kill them all. So Kuwabara was out of the question. That didn't mean he couldn't send someone else who could annoy Hiei nearly as much. He smirked darkly and sorted the ferrygirls in his mind for one who could replace Botan until further notice.

.-.

The hospital room Sasuke had been moved to was more of a cell than anything. There were no windows or ventilation and he was convinced the door had been sealed to keep even the tiniest bit of air from sneaking in. It made him wonder if he would suffocate once he had used up the available oxygen, or if the stuffiness was just in his mind. He knew there was a seal around his bed, which had been placed in the very center of the white, empty, room. He could feel the seal like a wet blanket draped over him, dulling his senses and weighting him down. If he had cared, he might have told them a leash would suffice and that the cage was unnecessary.

He was drained. That was putting it mildly. He had used everything he had and more that he didn't have in that fight with Naruto. He could barely remember stumbling the rest of the way to Orochimaru and it amazed him that no one had picked him up and carried him back to Konoha while he was too dazed to put up a fight. No one had. He had made it the rest of the way on his own and when he had gotten there...the reception wasn't what he had expected.

Had he arrived just a little sooner it would have been over immediately. Some sort of ceremony for the transfer and then nothing but a swift end, with the knowledge that he had sacrificed everything for his goal. Instead he had arrived too late. Orochimaru had been weak, just settling into his new container. And Orochimaru had been startled, even furious, when he had seen the condition Sasuke was in. That was the moment Sasuke began to realize just how badly he had misjudged things, and what a close call he had made. Orochimaru was a fool and somehow Sasuke had been completely blind to it. Even now, he couldn't fathom what the man had been thinking. What had Orochimaru expected? Had he really thought Konoha would just let one of their own go without putting up a fight? That his henchmen would return unscathed? Had he really not feared the source of Naruto's power?

Sasuke hadn't known. It was disgusting that he hadn't realized, especially after watching Naruto's battle with Gaara. But he honestly hadn't. He had seen the sudden strength, but he had been blind to the reason. It was unthinkable. He didn't want to make excuses for himself, but when it came down to it, it was just that. Unthinkable. The demon that had taken the life of a Hokage to defeat was still alive? And it was inside Naruto? Unthinkable. Even if Naruto had told him, he wouldn't have believed it.

Orochimaru had known what was inside Naruto. He had known all along. He had known why Itachi wanted Naruto and he hadn't said a word. He still didn't consider it a threat. Kyuubi! Even if it was housed in Naruto, how could anyone not consider it a threat when he was using it in battle? Of course Sasuke had been forced to use the seal. He hadn't known what Naruto was tapping at the time, but he knew now and it seemed amazingly stupid to think he could have gotten away from him without using the seal. And that was with Naruto in control. Sasuke had only walked away because Naruto hadn't wanted to kill him. What did Orochimaru think he could have done if Kyuubi had broken loose? He almost thought it had broken free for a moment during the battle, when he had been fighting chakra. Claws made entirely of...of chakra. How was he supposed to defend against that? If he hadn't used the next level of the seal, he would be dead now regardless of Naruto's determination to bring him back alive.

He felt dead. Naruto, the seal, then Orochimaru. His thoughts had twisted so much he didn't know what was weighing him down more, the revelations or his own self disgust. Nothing had turned out the way it should have and he saw no path that would lead him from here to his goal in life. This was what failure felt like and he didn't even have the energy to hate it properly. And they still thought he had the energy left to stand up, let alone try to escape? Where was he supposed to be escaping to? There was no guarantee Orochimaru would consider his body worth training with him in control of it. He refused to even consider what convincing the man might entail. Why would he go back? Orochimaru not only claimed Kyuubi was sealed and helpless, despite what Sasuke had seen with his own eyes, he actually had the nerve to punish him for using the seal he had given him. He would never understand that. The man had shoved his own weakness down his throat, tempted him with power so he would never have to feel that weak again, and then got angry when he grasped that power with both hands. Perhaps it had all been a ploy and Orochimaru had never intended for him to use that power himself. He hadn't intended Sasuke to remain in control of his body, after all. It was still infuriating. What could he gain if he went back? Three years of pandering to Orochimaru's ego in the hopes that he might grow strong enough for the man to make good use of him? Three years in a cage like a glorified pet? He didn't know why he had woken up in Konoha, but he was here. If he was going to be caged it didn't really matter where he was.

They had sent Ibiki to interrogate him. He couldn't help but be somewhat smug about that. It was a wasted effort on their part, but it was still nice to know they considered him that much of a threat in the hands of their enemies. He wasn't even the first Uchiha to end up with Orochimaru. They had stopped sending shinobi after Itachi years ago, and they knew Itachi would be a threat for as long as he lived. What threat did they think Sasuke posed that Itachi never had? Why had they sent an entire team after him when Itachi had walked in and out of Konoha, attacking Kakashi along the way, without so much as a single shinobi being sent after him? They hadn't bothered about a mass murderer and known missing nin, so why the fuss over one genin?

He had thought it was because he knew about Kyuubi. They must have read the chakra in the valley. He thought maybe they were afraid he would warned Orochimaru about the real power Naruto had access to, the power Konoha had access to. It was, after all, a power that Itachi's group planned to capture and harness for themselves. They had no way of knowing that Orochimaru didn't care about Naruto, Kyuubi, or the plans Itachi had for the latter. Sasuke was still a little stunned that Ibiki never so much as mentioned Kyuubi during his questioning. Did he really think Sasuke hadn't figured it out? Or did Ibiki not know about Naruto? He found it difficult to believe.

All of the questions had been about his loyalty and the information he had given to Orochimaru. He didn't even have to lie or hide details about his welcome to Sound because Ibiki never asked. He hadn't told Orochimaru anything about Konoha, either, and he had never planned to. He hadn't gone to Orochimaru as a Konoha shinobi. The only thing he had even spoken to Orochimaru about was his fight with Naruto, and that was just to explain why he had used the final stage of the seal. Orochimaru hadn't believed a word of that, so it didn't matter.

He didn't have any idea what they planned to do with him. For now they had him isolated and suppressed, but what about later? If he hadn't walked out of Konoha on his own the Sound nin would have taken him by force. He knew now that Orochimaru hadn't had any time to spare. His decision to leave of his own accord made him a traitor, but he had never viewed it that way. He wasn't Itachi. If Naruto hadn't been so stubborn he would never have a lifted a hand against anyone from Konoha. Even with Naruto, he had proven to himself that he wasn't a traitor like Itachi. He would sacrifice himself for power, but he would never sacrifice his closest friend. His conscience was clear on that point. Whether or not Konoha would view it that way remained to be seen. They viewed him as a greater threat than Itachi, after all. Konoha hadn't sent anyone after Itachi and Sasuke had managed to catch up to him with shocking ease. Konoha could have done the same, but had chosen not to. Yet they had sent an entire team after him? That made Konoha as incomprehensible as Orochimaru. He had no idea what they might do because he couldn't understand what they were thinking.

The door opened to admit a very unwelcome sight. Tall, a black bowlcut, thick rectangular eyebrows, and enough skintight green spandex to make even the most stoic man choke and whimper in the back of his throat. Sasuke locked his eyes on the white wall across from the door and prayed the man hadn't entered in order to talk to him. Ibiki could come back and torture him to his heart's content. Anything but Gai.

Since he wasn't looking in the man's direction, he didn't see what he did when he reached his bed. He felt it clearly, though. That wet blanket-like seal broke in an abrupt wash of fresh air. Sasuke refused to show any sign of relief. Gai could see that he was awake. He was probably just waiting for him to look over. There was no way he would do that. He would sit quietly through as many lectures as Kakashi and Tsunade wanted to give him, but he would sooner go back and kiss Orochimaru's feet than have Gai rant at him about not wasting the glorious days of his youth.

"Sa...Sasuke-kun...?"

Despite his determination not to look, Sakura's soft, faltering voice caught him by surprise. He pushed himself up and looked toward the door just in time to be blinded by Gai's face-splitting grin. No human should have teeth that white.

"Ah!" Gai exclaimed, beaming from the poor, ever-so-young Sasuke, who had been so sadly led astray, over to the hesitant, blossoming Sakura, who had so faithfully awaited his return. "Such a glorious-"

Sasuke did his best to block out the man, focusing instead on the pink-haired girl standing just inside the door. Sakura was wringing her hands, unshed tears shimmering in wide green eyes. He braced himself and looked away. What was he supposed to say to her? If he said one word, she was going to let out a wail and throw herself on him. He just knew it. He could already feel how much it would hurt, too. And if he tried ignoring her or shoving her off, she would cry and cling that much tighter.

"-miraculous proof of how wonderful-"

Sasuke twitched. That was it. Maybe if he decked Gai, they would seal him back up and deny visitors. Was this supposed to be his punishment? They might as well have sent Naruto in to-

"He's naked? Why's he naked!"

"N-Naruto! You insensitive idiot!"

A dull thud sounded, followed by a pained yelp and a sharp whine of, "Sakura-chan...!"

No, Sasuke realized. This wasn't punishment. This was hell. Gai stumbled for a moment of silence, then resumed where he had left off in his extols of the glory that was youth. Sasuke snapped his head around and glared at the man for all he was worth.

"Are you here to supervise me?" Sasuke asked, in the coldest tone he could manage given the circumstances.

Gai blinked in surprise. "No. I-"

"Then please leave. I want to talk to them alone."

Sasuke was quite proud that he had managed to make the order sound more like a request. He really wanted all three of them to leave, but he knew he would have to deal with his former teammates sooner or later. Sooner was better, especially if it meant Gai went far, far away from him.

It took a few more minutes for Gai to leave the room. Apparently his speech had been for Sasuke's benefit, so he was compelled to finish it before his departure. That gave Sakura time to control the blush she had gotten from Naruto's insensitive, but entirely accurate, assessment. At least, she tried to control it. The closer she looked, the more she realized exactly how much skin was showing from Sasuke's seated, half-turned position. Naturally she understood that they would have stripped him when they brought him in. And sealing him in a sterile room like this would be pointless if he was left with articles of clothing that might possibly serve as weapons. Yes...it was only natural. Far be it from her to make a fuss over the fact that she was standing three and a half feet away from a Sasuke clothed only in one drooping white sheet...

"It's not my fault," Naruto whined quietly. "He could have at least pulled the sheet up when he saw us come in..."

It wasn't as if he had meant to look. Kyuubi was the one who had taken one look at the bed and informed him that his 'boy' was entirely naked under that sheet.

'A very thin sheet,' Kyuubi added. 'If it were damp, you could see right through it.'

Naruto's face flamed darker than Sakura's and he danced in place, his eyes closed tight. 'Shut up - shut up - shut up!'

'At least he's still fresh. A few more days and you might have had to play second to the snake. Like this...'

Naruto choked at the image that flashed into his head. Orochimaru, tongue, naked Sasuke. 'OhMyGodShutUp! That's so disgusting! Sasuke would never let that disgusting - gagh! Oh! Stop it! Stop it, or I swear I'll scratch my eyes out. I swear! Oh, man, I'm gonna be sick...! Ew...! Ew, it hurts...!'

Sasuke stared at his teammates with a dazed look on his face. Sakura wasn't looking so shy anymore. In fact, she was wearing a rabid fangirl blush that he usually only saw on Ino, and she shook a little with each breath, like she was giggling in the back of her throat. Her eyes were roving over him in a way that made him tug the sheet up to his chin. Naruto, on the other hand, appeared to be having some sort of fit, shuddering and jittering in place. He was scrubbing his eyes with the heel of one hand, the other locked claw-like over his mouth. What the hell had happened to them while he was gone?

"I've only been gone three days..."

.-.

The office building Kurama's human stepfather owned was a sterile graceless thing, planted in the middle of a dozen other colorless deathtraps. The streets and lots were crowded, the air was thick, and a person could barely stand on the rooftop without cringing under the weight of the filth and imminent death. And demons complained that the atmosphere in the Makai was stifling. Idiots.

Kurama had resisted his mother's well-meaning but unheartfelt pleas for him to go on to college and find a career that suited him better. They both knew his intelligence was wasted here, playing errand boy for his stepfather and filling a position that any secretary with a minimal education could have handled. He chose to stay because it let him maintain an interest in the family without having as much direct contact. Shiori never came to the office, but she was satisfied just knowing he was near. She could put him out of her mind that way, making it easier when the time came for her to forget him. Being in position to spy on the man she had married was another perk. Too bad he was every bit as kind and straight-laced at work as he was at home. Even after working for the man, Kurama had no idea what his mother saw in him. He was the epitome of normal. Boring.

Kurama let his footsteps announce him as he stepped out onto the sunspeckled rooftop. It was his way of thanking Hiei for not popping up on the window sill and scaring one of the secretaries into spilling hot tea on him. It was all good and well that Hiei could erase a human's memory with a snap of his fingers, but Kurama was the one left with the burns and stains, and those were considerably harder to get rid of. He found Hiei standing on the ledge and scowling at his feet. Kurama smirked.

"You can step down, you know," he greeted. "The concrete isn't as dirty as it smells."

Hiei didn't budge. He never did when he was forced to visit Kurama here as apposed to his more sanitary house. Especially during the day, when the sounds and exhaust fumes were thick enough to make his head hurt. It was a wonder Kurama's lungs weren't black from breathing this in every day.

He lifted his gaze from the smog-stained concrete beneath his feet and shot a look at the fox. Kurama was wearing a suit, black and straight cut. He must have thrown on the coat when he felt Hiei's energy pulse, because the flowing material and copper color didn't match. His hair was the same, red, thick bangs dipping into too-vivid green eyes, long side-locks falling forward over his shoulders. The rest was pulled back in a loose tail that didn't come anywhere near being tame and dignified and normal. He might as well have been playing dress-up.

"You look awful," Hiei grimaced.

"I love you, too," smiled Kurama. "I didn't expect to be seeing you so soon. Weren't you investigating that kekkai? A blank spot in the middle of Mukuro's territory and you take time off to come see me? Really, Hiei. I had no idea."

Hiei tried to keep his eyebrow from twitching, but it was useless. He turned his head so Kurama wouldn't see it and gloat. It was a lost cause since his irritated tone gave him away.

"We need to talk," he said. "Not here."

Hiei's shoulders had hunched a little, just enough for Kurama to smirk at his profile.

"Right now?" asked Kurama. "Across rooftops in the middle of the day? You must really be desperate to get me alone with you."

Hiei twitched and rounded sharply. He really didn't like stepping onto that sun-baked, smog-soaked, roof. There just had to be a humid lack of wind today. He glared and flitted over to the annoying fox. It took four seconds for Kurama to catch his scent. That sly, taunting smile flashed into a look of shock, followed immediately by anger and a sharp golden sheen in his eyes. Hiei hesitated long enough to smirk in amusement. Then a hand shot out and he darted away, confident the fox would follow. Canines. They were all about the chase. Honestly.

An hour later the two of them were in the Makai, having the private discussion Hiei had aimed for. The only deviation from his plans was the distance between them, and Kurama's unexpected tantrum.

"Stop involving innocent bystanders," Kurama glared up at him.

Hiei rolled his eyes and leaned to the side of the smoldering and not at all innocent branch he had taken shelter on. Kurama had gone youko on him the second they had crossed realms, all silvery hair and glossy white clothing. Not to mention sharp claws, gnashing teeth, bristling tail, and narrow golden eyes. As if Hiei was actually going to go near him when he looked like that. This was exactly why he hadn't told him on a ningen rooftop where some idiot human might walk out at any moment.

"Don't make the trees attack me and I won't burn them," Hiei said calmly.

"Then come down here and talk to me," snapped Kurama.

"Like you really plan to talk if I come down there," Hiei smirked.

"Damn it, Hiei!"

"I don't see why you're so angry," Hiei continued, in a careless and amused tone, as if he wasn't on guard for the moment the tree tried to snatch him again. "I came all the way to that wretched building to tell you. I thought you'd be intrigued."

Kurama wasn't the least bit amused. Hiei had known exactly how he would react. "You let him touch you."

"Only for a second to confirm my suspicions," said Hiei.

Whether they were doing it from a distance or not, Hiei was satisfied that they were finally talking about what mattered. "I couldn't tell how old or powerful he is, but he's sealed in a human host. They can probably communicate, but their souls haven't merged. We may not be able to contact him without going through the human he's contained in. A child, about the age Yusuke was. Bui and I don't-"

A growl interrupted him, and Hiei kept a closer watch for any vines that might be sneaking their way toward him. He should have known better than to mention Bui when Kurama was already annoyed with him.

"You'd be able to relate with the host," said Hiei. "We already know the demon's interested in you from the way he attacked."

"Come down."

Hiei sighed and looked at the seemingly calm youko staring up at him. As if he couldn't see the way Kurama's silvery tail was lashing behind him. What a one-track mind. He continued as if Kurama hadn't spoken. "Koenma's delivering one of the humans to Yusuke. If you want to help, we need to meet them and show the human the Ningenkai."

"I'm coming with you," said Kurama, "but it'll be difficult if you won't go near me. Come down here."

"I'm not in the mood for a quickie-"

"Damn it, Hiei!"

"-and there's no time for anything else," Hiei finished. "I'll meet you at Yusuke's in the Ningenkai. You should pack and make excuses before that. This could take weeks."

"Hiei..."

"Try not to attack that human if you get there before I do. He smells more like that youko than I do."

"And where do you think you're going?" Kurama glared.

"To update Mukuro," Hiei smirked. "You're not invited. She's still upset with you for attacking her new second in command during your last visit. Go back to the Ningenkai, fox. As amusing as you are this way, you're not thinking clearly enough to catch me. I'll be sure to burn this scent off before I come back."

Hiei darted off, leaving Kurama scowling at the still smoldering tree. Contrary to Hiei's biased opinion, Kurama had no intention of chasing him down and...marking his territory. He hated the way Hiei phrased that, as if he went around pouncing and biting people like an animal. He didn't hold to tradition that strongly. He was part human now. Hiei was much worse than him with his use and discard, taunt and run. That was definitely a koorime trait. At least it explained why Yukina was so affable and stationary. She had gotten the looks and Hiei had gotten the instincts. The power and speed he had inherited from his father just made him better at it than his koorime ancestors. He was a damned tease. And he was so going to get it when this was over.

.-.

Umino Iruka was livid. It didn't look good on him. He had a way of blowing up so that his eyes bulged and his head appeared four times its normal size. Then there was his mouth, better described as a gaping maw. And his painfully booming voice. Tsunade finally understood why even jounins in the mission office went out of their way not to annoy the man. For a simple chunin school teacher with a tendency to blush when he laughed, Iruka was downright scary when he was mad. And so very loud...

Tsunade rubbed her ringing ears and waited. Sure enough, an embarrassed silence followed the outburst. Iruka remembered who he was railing at and dropped his eyes. A faint blush struck out on his cheeks, making the scar across the bridge of his nose more prominent. Tsunade decided she liked him better like this, abashed and pliable. It was cute. If he stayed that way long enough, maybe she could forget how big his head got when he yelled.

"Like I said," she sighed, "I just called their bluff. Unfortunately, they weren't bluffing."

Iruka closed his eyes tight. It was very difficult not to snap when she admitted her mistake with such a careless tone. He would never understand why the elders had been set on looking outside the village for their next Hokage. Tsunade's medical skills were unparalleled, and she was certainly more reliable than Jiraiya. She was still a virtual stranger gambling with the lives of people she had never met and knew nothing about. And Naruto had gone on and on about how she was a gambling addict known all over the continent for always losing. He prayed that Naruto had been exaggerating.

"There's no reason to be concerned at this point," said Tsunade. "Whatever their true goal is, they won't make any progress if they don't bring Kakashi back with them."

Iruka looked up. "And Kyuubi?"

Tsunade frowned darkly and didn't answer immediately. She hadn't yet decided how she felt about that. She didn't know what to think. Naruto wasn't just tapping into Kyuubi's resources, he was communicating with it. And that arrogant pervert Jiraiya had to have had something to do with it, she just knew it. When she got her hands on him, she would wring his wrinkled neck. Except she couldn't, because he would probably get off on that. Damn meddling pervert.

"I spoke with them," she finally said. "They weren't demons. Their chakra was strange, but they weren't masking their appearances. There are no records of demons that look as human as that."

"You think Kyuubi's lying?" asked Iruka.

"It doesn't have any reason to tell us the truth. Even if they are containers like Gaara, the demon wouldn't have attacked them unless it felt threatened by their presence here. You're sure Naruto's hiding something?"

"Yes," Iruka said, reluctantly, "but I'm convinced it's nothing that would endanger Konoha. I think it's more that Kyuubi is taunting him, especially with the extra seal keeping its chakra in check. It's talking to him and I don't think he can shut it up on his own."

"Well, if it's a competition of willpower..."

"...Naruto is too stubborn to lose," Iruka finished. Naruto was the one issue on which they were united. They shared a brief, knowing, look before Iruka switched back to worry mode. "A distraction is just what he needs right now."

"Good. Because I honestly don't know what to do with that kid. Ibiki says he's not dangerous, and I'm more than willing to blame Orochimaru for the entire mess we had chasing after him. The council doesn't like it, but they're too relieved I accepted this post for them to openly oppose me this soon. Sasuke still left on his own, though, and he and Naruto nearly killed each other. Naruto's fervor is understandable, especially now that we know Kyuubi is active, but Sasuke..."

"Kakashi is the one who understands him best," said Iruka.

And they were right back where they started. Tsunade sighed and waved a hand at the tenacious chunin.

"I'll send him over after he reports back," she said. "I've already assigned a team to watch Naruto. You're free to join them until further notice. Now get out of my office. If you fly off the handle every time I assign Hatake Kakashi a dangerous mission, I'm going to suspect you have ulterior motives. You know how rumors fly around here. Think of your reputation."

Iruka sputtered and blushed and beat a hasty retreat. She watched him go with a catty smile. Nice. It would be a while before he got up the nerve to argue with one of her decisions again.

.-.  
TBC


	4. 4

Sasuke was relieved to find that his former teammates calmed down after Gai left them alone together. They weren't exactly acting normal, but it was close enough. The two were still standing by the door, Naruto pointedly not looking at him, Sakura blatantly looking at him too much. At least Sakura wasn't crying or threatening to swallow him with her eyes anymore. Neither of them seemed eager to break the silence, so Sasuke got to the point as quickly as possible.

"Why are you here?" asked Sasuke.

Naruto whipped his head around, "What the hell kind of question is that! We're here to check on you, obviously." His eyebrow twitched and he quickly looked away again, adding a muttered 'teme' as an afterthought.

Sakura looked hesitant, "Sasuke...I - that is, we - we were worried about you and...it's so good to have you back."

"I didn't come back on my own," Sasuke reminded them, frowning at Naruto in particular.

He hadn't expected to see them again. He had broken ties with them, hadn't he? It didn't matter that someone had dragged him back to Konoha. Nothing had changed. If they gave him freedom, he would just go back to being under Kakashi, who was more interested in dousing his ambition than feeding it. And the next time Orochimaru sent minions after him he would be just as weak as he was now. He would face the exact same decision again, walk out on his own or be taken, and despite his disgusted disappointment in Orochimaru he would probably make the exact same decision again. So what was the point? They might as well have left him where he was.

Sakura was starting to get that teary eyed look again. Sasuke ignored it. At least she was actually looking at him unlike some people who should have been giving him an earful by now.

"Who brought me back here?" he asked her.

"Ah," Sakura blinked, "that was..." She shot a look at Naruto's profile, which didn't help much. "We don't really know who. They were strangers. They came to see the hokage."

That was a good way to gain favors, Sasuke thought. It made sense. If it had been someone from Konoha they wouldn't have risked trying to escape Orochimaru's lair with him alive. They would have killed him on sight and disposed of the remains.

Sakura took a tentative step forward, the first move either of them had made since Gai's flamboyant exit. "Sasuke-kun? This is yours..."

She lifted his scratched hitaiate in one hand and smiled tearily down at it. A minute ago she hadn't had anything in her hands. Sasuke decided not to wonder where she had been keeping it. Had Naruto brought that back with him?

"We can't give it to you in here," Sakura said quickly, "but we'll hold onto it and as soon as you get out, we'll give it back to you."

Why was she acting as if nothing had happened? Sasuke stared blankly at her. She was usually the smart one.

"I can't wear that," said Sasuke.

Obviously. He have given up the right to wear that the moment he had left the village. Not to mention the forehead protector still bore Naruto's lengthwise scratch that would make anyone who saw it think he had damaged it intentionally. He might be considered a traitor, but he didn't particularly want to walk around announcing that fact. Assuming he had a chance to walk around anywhere.

Sakura looked wounded. Sasuke dropped back on his bed and turned his face toward the other wall. If all they were going to do was pretend things were normal, there was no point humoring them.

"If you aren't going to say anything relevant," Sasuke said flatly, "you might as well leave."

Naruto promptly exploded. Sasuke didn't have the chakra to feel it, but his hearing was just fine. He didn't so much as tense when Naruto rushed to the side of his bed and stopped short. If he had been wearing a shirt, this was where Naruto would have grabbed him by the collar. Sasuke turned in time to see Naruto jerk his hands back. No collar meant no grabbing.

Naruto clenched his hands and growled instead, "Damn it, Sasuke-teme! Sakura-chan's been worried sick about you - you made her cry! You tried to kill me - the least you can do is apologize, teme!"

That was more like what Sasuke had expected from this reunion. His expression didn't change, but his tone was less blank and more darkly amused. "Apologize," he repeated. "For not killing you?"

"For trying to kill me!" Naruto cried, more outraged by Sasuke's tone than anything. "What's wrong with you?"

"I'm here," Sasuke said immediately. He was here and shouldn't have been. He had an excuse for not knowing how to handle this situation because he had never planned on it. Naruto had wanted to drag him back from start to finish of their fight, even after he had made it clear he intended to kill him. Had Naruto even considered what would have happened if he had succeeded? Was he really naive enough to have thought he could simply bring him back and have everything go back to normal again? Even if Konoha didn't force him to face the consequences of his actions, he wasn't going to forget them. He wasn't going to forget how it had felt to put an arm through Naruto's chest. He had killed him in his heart. If not for Kyuubi, Sasuke would have the same cursed eyes as Itachi now and Naruto would be dead. Because of the demon they had both been given a second chance, but that didn't erase what had happened. There was no going back to normal now. "You're the one 'checking on me' as if we're still teammates."

"We are!" Naruto growled. "We're still a team. Just because you went and-"

"Naruto," Sakura started, "that's not-"

"-ran off," Naruto continued, talking louder, "doesn't mean you can get out of it that easy! It doesn't matter how many times you run off, I'll still bring your ass back and-" He jerked suddenly, grimacing and making an odd sound that was half groan, half gag. "Damn it, stop that! I didn't mean-"

Sasuke stared as Naruto let out a loud 'gragh' sound, clenched a hand in the hair over his right ear, garbled something about 'split-eared bastards', and bolted from the room. Sakura turned just as the door slammed behind him. She looked as shocked as Sasuke felt when she finally glanced back.

"What's wrong with him...?" asked Sasuke.

Sure, there had been a dozen times during their fight where either of them should have died. But of the two of them, he had been thrown into the cliff a lot more than Naruto. If one of them should have come out brain damaged, it was him. Naruto had bolted too quickly for it to be anything physical.

Sakura blinked slowly, sending another confused look at the door. "I don't know. That was weird, even for Naruto." She let out a weak laugh and turned toward him again. "He's probably just feeling awkward. He was really happy about you being back, Sasuke-kun. We both are."

She smiled wider, her eyes getting teary again. "I'm, ah, that is, neither of us was supposed to see you alone, so, I should probably go now. But we'll be back soon!"

Sasuke frowned and turned to stare at the ceiling. "You don't need to come back."

Silence filled the room for a moment before a soft, "Yes, we do."

He heard the door shut behind her and closed his eyes. Of course she wouldn't change. She didn't realize how lucky she was that he had never been as close to her as he was to Naruto. If it had been Sakura he would have killed her and there would have been no demon to keep her alive long enough for him to reconsider. Strange that the demon that had taken the life of a previous hokage might be responsible for saving the life of a future one.

.-.

The blue-haired girl with the flying boat paddle took Kakashi on a sweeping tour of a city before heading for their ultimate destination. It was an interesting experience, not particularly shocking, which surprised him. The landscape was bigger. The buildings were colder, stone - cement, Botan informed him - and tall and lifeless looking things. He had seen similar buildings in other countries, namely near the Sand village. Similar, yet here they were...bigger and colder. The same thing was true for the bridges, cable constructions not dissimilar from the one in Wave, just wider and filled with metallic vehicles rather than coaches. He had heard of contraptions like those, amused rumors of what bored scientists in other villages toyed with. They were impractical when one had to traverse narrow forest paths that barely fit a visiting coach. Here they had molten lanes for the vehicles - tar, blacktop - that wouldn't be destroyed by the weight of the metal things - cars, trucks, semis - and multiple lanes to account for the thick traffic. The sheer number of the vehicles did alarm him somewhat because it implied a huge population - and Botan was quick to tell him this was a relatively small urban town.

His guide pointed things out in a rambling sing-song voice, telling him all about the areas - business district, residential, shopping mall - when to his eyes it was just a very big chaotic mess of buildings randomly separated into blocks and sections by those paved streets. There were no walls to keep invaders out. No forests to hide in - plenty of those in third world nations, though - and apparent class systems - by income, industry, masters degree, and there's still a queen in England and a President in the states - weren't so apparent. What 'slums' she pointed out to him didn't look much different from the buildings she claimed were for the wealthy elite - it's the inside that counts, poor decor, shabby plumbing, no air conditioning - and even the - residential - homes that were similar to any in his own village might house the rich next to the poor. Where were the armies? And she pursed her lips and told him to talk to Kurama about that sort of thing. He held his questions for the time being.

They flew toward one of those small homes, Kakashi sitting on the back of her flying boat paddle, his mask sparing him from swallowing the whipping tip of her pony tail. She flew at and through the wall, and it took him a panicked moment to rationalize that. He had heard all about the spirit world - Reikai, Shinigami, though ferry girl sounds so much nicer - and tried to accept that he wasn't actually here. Physically. He had still felt the wind when she had flown low and then high over the city. And he felt a suffocating ickiness when she barreled through that wall. If someone attacked him, would it connect? Would his own attacks connect in his defense? She laughed as if he were cute when he asked. He didn't ask again.

There was a panic when they arrived in a bedroom, catching two teenage boys in the middle of a wrestling match involving choke holds and whapping a video game controller on the floor. Botan explained once they had untangled themselves. Her explanation - a bunch of humans have been living secretly in Makai and we're going to show him the Ningenkai because his people might have to move here! - made him scratch at the back of his neck. Her response to the boys' natural disbelief - they don't even have airplanes - actually annoyed him. If they didn't have these things it was because they had never needed them. They could have had buildings and vehicles like these, but they would be impractical and who would want to live in a lifeless tomb, anyway? This little room, from the bed to the television, the game station, was no different from any civilian teen's room in Konoha. Well, televisions were too expensive for most civilians to afford one for a child's room, but otherwise it was the same.

"You're not insulted, are you?" Botan asked, picking up on his mood. "It's not your fault you've been stuck living in Makai." She shivered. "At least you have electricity and laws. You're lucky to have evolved past blood sacrifice and slavery!"

Kakashi's eyebrow twitched, "We still have those." Particularly in some of the oldest bloodlimit clans. Hyuuga Neiji could have given her an earful.

"Oh..."

He looked the two boys over as they bombarded Botan with questions. Both were muscular, young, sixteen or seventeen if he had to guess. The taller one had orange hair curled ridiculously out over his forehead and a tendency to squeal when he spoke too quickly. The other one had short black hair slicked back over his head and a way of smirking that reminded Kakashi, rather painfully, of how Sasuke had looked when he had gotten one up on Naruto. He missed his team, the old team, before Haku and the exam and everything had gone to hell.

"You don't have shinobi here?" asked Kakashi.

The black-haired boy - Yusuke, Botan had called him - looked surprised. "What, like in the movies?"'

"They still have them in Makai," the other boy, Kuwabara, said loudly. "Jin, right?"

"Yeah, Jin and Touya's team called themselves that. But they were more like mercenaries than ninja, you know? They were only together for the strength in numbers. All that pride shit fell apart the second they fought-"

"Don't remind me!"

Kakashi caught Botan's eye, leaving the boys to their reminiscing. "Then you don't have shinobi here?"

A new voice spoke up from the doorway, "The samurai era ended a long time ago, shinobi along with it. The clans had to adapt in the face of technology. You don't use swords and knives and tactile combat against automatic machine guns and nuclear weapons capable of destroying entire countries with the push of a button." A redhead was standing there, his green eyes holding Kakashi's coldly. "Humans wage war from home now. Men in offices make decisions while pawns shoot each other from a distance. And if their pawns are outnumbered, they push a button, drop a bomb, and say goodbye to everyone, soldiers and civilians alike. Those who prefer feeling the blood of their victims stalk the streets and hide their kills in dumpsters and rivers. Why not? There are always more humans where those came from. You certainly don't get your hands dirty pushing a button or squeezing a trigger."

"Shit, Kurama!" Yusuke grimaced. "What crawled up your ass and died?"

The redhead flashed innocent surprise, "I'm just answering his question."

Kakashi gave a slow look from the newcomer to Botan, "Then your...airplanes...come with a price."

"Technology always does," Kurama smiled unpleasantly. "Old diseases are prevented and cured, while pollution and excessive living create new ones every day. Humans die from overeating while children starve to death on the other side of the world. You can't walk barefoot in a river without runoff from the plant upstream making you sick, but you can build a station miles beneath the ocean and fly men to the moon. It's a trade. Humans were removed from the Makai to protect them from being killed by demons. So they find creative ways to kill themselves instead. If any of this sounds disturbing to you, you'd learn more visiting the Makai than you will looking around here."

Yusuke stepped between Kakashi and the door, cutting off Kurama's taunting, "You're just talking about the bad side. I don't know what's got your panties in a twist, but knock it off." He shot a look at Kakashi. "He's not usually like this. Hell, half the time he's the one defending humans and pointing out all the good things about them. I think he's channeling Hiei or something. You met him?"

"Yes," said Kakashi. "Briefly."

"Yeah, well, the point is humans got their bad side, demons got their good side, neither of them's really better than the other no matter what bullshit you heard in the Reikai, and that's that. Some of my best friends are demons. Some of their," and he shot another baffled look at the stone-faced Kurama, "best friends are humans. We all get along just fine, thanks."

"Yusuke," said Kurama.

"What?"

"Did Botan tell you where in Makai he comes from?"

Yusuke frowned thoughtfully. "A group of humans who'd been living there secretly?"

"Hidden by a kekkai that's apparently been in the middle of Mukuro's territory since before the worlds were separated," Kurama informed him, again, with a not quite pleasant smile. "They don't live with demons. They don't even recognize demons. The only demon Hiei made contact with there was trapped in a human, sealed but separate, treated as a living battery incapable of rational thought. When he mentioned wanting to communicate with the demon, they reacted the same way you would if someone asked to interview Kuwabara's cat."

"What, really?"

"Yes, really."

Kakashi suddenly found himself receiving several distasteful stares. Even Botan grimaced at him. He refused to let himself feel cornered. They were talking about Kyuubi. He wasn't at liberty to discuss that even if he had felt the need to defend himself.

"What's that mean, exactly?" Kuwabara muttered. "Not all demons are smart enough to talk to, anyway, so..."

"This one is," Kurama said sharply.

"Well," Kuwabara floundered, "maybe it's dangerous and there's a good reason for-"

"What kind of demon is it?" asked Yusuke.

Kurama smiled. "Guess."

"Urk!" Kuwabara choked off any further attempt to be optimistic about this. He raised his hands and backed away from the frigid redhead. A wince passed his face as he glanced at Kakashi, "Good luck."

"Okay, okay!" Botan broke them up with a threatening wave of her oar. "No fighting! We're supposed to be showing him around the Ningenkai, not-"

"I've seen enough to report on," said Kakashi. He didn't want to be away from the village any longer than necessary. Orochimaru wasn't the type to sit back idly after all the trouble he had gone to already, and there was still the Akatsuki to contend with. This situation, whatever it ultimately implied for the village, was Tsunade's business. Until, unless, she gave him leave to discuss things openly with these people, he couldn't do anything but make matters worse. He had seen enough to know it was real. That was the mission assigned to him. "Take me back now," he said to Botan.

"Oh! But..."

"We have to wait for Hiei," said Yusuke. He glanced at Botan, "Don't we?"

"He's in charge over there," Botan nodded worriedly. "Since it's Mukuro's territory."

Kuwabara snorted. "So that's why I can't go! Stupid shrimp. Come on, Urameshi, you still gotta make excuses to your mom and-"

"It's not like she'd even notice I'm gone," said Yusuke. He did let himself be prodded toward the door, Kurama edging aside to let him through. "You can explain to Keiko, right? If I call her now, she'll kill me."

"Oh, sure," Kuwabara scoffed. "I'll just tell her you gotta go to Makai for a while to keep the shrimp from slaughtering a bunch of humans. She'll love that!"

"You don't have to put it that way..."

With the room emptier, Kurama slipped in to sit on the edge of the bed. If anything, his expression darkened. Botan was suddenly torn between following the boys and keeping things civil. Odd, considering Kurama was usually the mediator of the group.

"Are you not allowed to talk about him?" Kurama asked Kakashi.

"Who?"

"The youko."

"I'm not," Kakashi confirmed. He toyed briefly with the idea of reading his book while he waited and decided against it. The redhead was dangerous, openly, with a muted chakra that made the hairs on his neck stand up. As painfully curious as he was to see how that chakra would feel at full blast, he had more restraint than that. He could satisfy his curiosity later. After all- "You're coming along?"

"I wouldn't miss this for the world," Kurama smiled. "What's his name? Surely you can tell me that much."

Kakashi sent him an amused look, "What makes you certain it's male?"

"Scent. You reek of him."

That was a new one on him. Kakashi couldn't stop himself from recoiling, just a little. Kyuubi didn't have a body, so he couldn't have a scent. Even if he did, surely the Inuzuka kid would have noticed during his match with Naruto. Hell, Pakkun would have noticed when they had raced toward the Valley with all of Kyuubi's chakra blazing their senses. Or maybe that was what Kurama meant. Kyuubi's chakra was very distinct. He could certainly have gotten a little on him when he had carried Naruto back. But that was three days ago.

"Kyuubi," Kakashi said. Everyone knew of the nine-tailed natural disaster, so he wasn't divulging anything restricted. "The nine-tailed spirit fox."

Kurama flinched, shooting off the bed to pace distractedly. He shoved his bangs back, eyes narrow and dark.

Kakashi followed his movements with the first stirring of amusement. That had shocked the intimidating aura right out of the teen. Now he reminded him of someone. Sasuke, when he had spied on the boy during that initial bell test and watched him wrack his brain for a viable attack plan. Who did Kurama intend to attack? Kyuubi? He almost laughed. "You've heard of him?"

"I wasn't alive when the worlds were separated," Kurama said, in a scathing resentful tone. "I should have known. The only demons inside the kekkai are ones that were there when the shield went up. Nine tails..." And he turned on Kakashi, his expression violent. "How could he have been sealed by a mere human! Against his will!"

Now the amusement sharpened into an outright smile. Kakashi shrugged, carelessly amused. "Sorry. I'm not at liberty to discuss that." Green eyes flashed visibly. Was he going to attack? Really, now. Kurama looked personally insulted. "It wasn't easy, if that makes you feel better."

Kurama's breath hissed inward, he tensed, and just as abruptly, his stance went lax and casual. He gave a polite smile without a hint of threat or darkness. "I didn't get your name."

"Kakashi."

"Are you a good shinobi, Kakashi-san?"

"Oh," Kakashi drawled, "I like to think so."

"Well, then. I look forward to working with you." Kurama held a hand out with a disarming smile. He laughed softly when Kakashi hesitated. "Do you shake hands in your society?"

"Occasionally." It didn't take a genius to know the redhead was up to something. Kakashi was a genius, so he absolutely knew the redhead was up to something. He shook hands with him, anyway. And he wasn't quite surprised when the door flew open and suspicious red eyes locked on their clasped hands. He wondered how Kurama had felt Hiei coming in order to time this little scene so perfectly. The redhead was a clever one. "Hello, again."

"You're still in one piece," Hiei noted, still staring suspiciously at Kurama's hand. He was glad when the two stepped back. His attention shifted to Botan, who was looking confused. Nothing unusual there. "The tour?"

"He said he'd seen enough to report on," said Botan.

"Good." He shot a warning look at Kurama, not fooled for a second by his sweetly innocent smile. "Let's go."

.-.

They didn't get an audience with the hokage when they returned to the village after a short stop in the Reikai. Kakashi went alone, leaving them to wait under watchful Anbu eyes.

His report to her was succinct. It was real. He considered them dangerous. Enough to force them to relocate? No, he didn't think so. Enough to cripple them with casualties if forced into a conflict? Absolutely. They were already low on high ranked shinobi, which was the very reason Sasuke's 'recapture' had gone so badly. If they'd had even one available Anbu, they could have caught him easily. Naruto had certainly worn him down enough. There were too many teams out, scouting for information on the Akatsuki, deliberating with Sand, conferences with their weaker allies who were doubting them after the debacle of the exam. This was a horrible time to have a new enemy of unknown strength.

Kakashi kept most of his own opinions to himself during the debriefing. If she wanted to hear his opinions, she would ask. After his report, she did. He had expected her to. A lot of people were doubtful of her ability to lead the village. He knew better.

He thought they should go along with it. Better to keep them here, civil, let them learn what it was they had come to learn, and learn from them in the meantime. As dangerous as things were, they couldn't afford to have them alienated. Kyuubi was their primary interest in Konoha. There were other shinobi villages with demons. They didn't want these strangers joining sides with their enemies, just because their enemies were more willing to answer their questions and cooperate. He didn't believe they posed a threat to Naruto. They seemed to know a great deal about demons, it might even help Naruto live with the one locked inside him. He again reminded her of Yusuke's claim that some of his best friends were demons. If that were possible, to make an ally out of a demon, a friend, then they had even more reason not to let these people talk to their enemies. Demons were dangerous enough when they were simply tools used by shinobi. If they could be convinced to fight because they wanted to, the balance of any conflict would automatically lean in their favor.

She sent him away without making a decision. He had expected that, too. She would confer with the counsel, possibly even Jiraiya, since he was the most familiar with Naruto's seal. What he didn't expect was the order she gave before dismissing him.

"Go visit your team," she said, flicking him away. "I want them relocated within the hour. You're on babysitting duty until further notice. Don't let any of them die." And she glowered at him, "Or run away."

"Understood."

.-.

Hiei's team was given four rooms in a hotel, informed by a masked Anbu that they were under probation. They could move around the village, but they would be watched. He didn't say a word about the demon, or the real reason they were here. Maybe he didn't know. He also didn't forbid them from interrogating civilians. Hiei supposed if they did something their watchers disliked, they would be informed of it. He was immediately suspicious of the freedom they were being given. They would go along with it for now. Learning about this human civilization was as important as interviewing the demons. They gathered in one of the rooms to make plans.

"We need currency," said Kurama. "The rooms are provided for, but we'll learn more if we mingle. Listen to gossip, see how the villagers interact. Find the ones interested in talking."

"Botan," Yusuke said immediately, with a grin. "Let her go around alone. If she doesn't get hit on, we'll know right away the people aren't normal. Same for you-"

"Don't."

"You're so touchy," he grimaced. "It wouldn't kill you to flirt a little. Girls talk more than guys, you know."

"I'm sure you'll manage that just fine," smiled Kurama.

Yusuke squinted suspiciously, "Then what are you and Hiei planning to do?"

"Watch our watchers," said Hiei. "There are two types of humans here. You'll work on the civilians. We," and he sent a knowing look at Kurama, "will incite the shinobi."

"That shouldn't be hard," Kurama murmured.

"Wait," protested Yusuke, "I thought we were going along with it. You're gonna make us play nice with the civies while you pick a fight? That's not fair."

"We won't be fighting," said Hiei. "Unless they start it. We'll be...investigating."

Yusuke scoffed at that. "You're not a 'Spirit Detective' anymore. You never investigated when you were."

"Hiei's the leader here," Kurama reminded him. Such a reversal of their old dynamic. It would take some time before Yusuke got used to not being the one in charge. Not that Kurama had any intention of following orders, either. But they should at least play nice while Hiei was watching them. He caught that knowing glare and smiled sweetly.

"Stop smiling like that," Hiei grimaced. "It's disturbing."

"Spoil sport."

Hiei turned to Yusuke, "Find a place that buys things. See what we need. Botan can fetch it if it's something ningen. I'll send Bui after it, if it's raw materials easier to get in Makai." He looked at Botan, "See where the civilians spend their free time. And any place where the shinobi and civilians mingle equally. Stay away from any group of shinobi who might notice your reiki. You're weak, female, civilian. If you're identified as a threat, you go back to the Reikai."

"I'm not going to blow my cover," Botan huffed. "Give me some credit."

Yusuke laughed at her. "He means no floating, no going through walls, no pulling your oar out of thin air. You know, no doing what you always do when you're trying to pass as a human. You gave yourself away to Kuwabara the first time you met him because you couldn't remember to keep your feet on the ground."

"It was an accident..."

"Exactly. No accidents this time."

"All right, then," Kurama smiled. "Yusuke, go find a way for us to make some quick money. Botan, feel free to hit anyone who gets too frisky with you. You're a civilian, and a cute one, but you're not a push-over."

"You better believe I'm not!" Botan sniffed, one fist raised threateningly. Despite her appearance, she was quite capable of knocking sense into a person. With or without a baseball bat. "Come on, Yusuke. You can escort me out."

Kurama shut the door behind them and then leaned on it. His expression immediately went sly. "You're true to your word. I can't smell him on you at all."

"Then why are you still looking at me like that?"

"Because I like looking at you, of course."

Hiei snorted. "What upset you earlier?"

"I know who he is," sighed Kurama. "Old, very old. Just a legend in my time. A red youko, so old he didn't even have a humanoid form. He didn't need one." He tilted his head back against the door, eyes falling closed. "He must have been huge, monstrous. So old and powerful..."

"Intimidated?"

"Intrigued..."

"I thought you would be," Hiei smirked. "I couldn't sense his strength or age, but he attacked despite his seal. Completely shameless."

"You shouldn't have challenged him," said Kurama. His amused tone belied the criticism. "You're completely shameless."

"He's been neutered. The human he's sealed in is too young to survive his youki, so he can't fight at full strength, however old he is, not even to defend himself. He must have known it was futile to even attempt attacking me."

"Which is why you challenged him. He'll be furious now. I feel sorry for the boy he's trapped inside of."

"Then why are you grinning?"

Kurama pushed off from the door and circled Hiei casually. "Oh, just thumbing my nose at a legend. That's such a human thing to do. You would think I had no respect for my elders. No, Hiei, he's going to want to tear me apart for letting you rile him that way."

"As if you have any control over what I do."

"I would if I weren't part human now. I'd have put you in your place a long time ago."

"I don't fancy going to a Reikai prison. If you weren't part human, I'd have killed you a long time ago."

"Touché," Kurama acknowledged. "We're alone here."

"I noticed."

.-.  
TBC


	5. 5

Naruto was crouched down in a shaded nook between a tree and the side of a building a few blocks away from the hospital. His head was in his hands and his shoulders were visibly bunched beneath his jacket. Sakura hesitated a few feet away. She didn't know what to say to him. She hadn't known what to say since Kakashi had brought him back. This was all her fault. She had let Naruto convince her Sasuke was too strong to be tempted by the power Orochimaru offered because she had wanted to be convinced. She should have told Kakashi as well. Maybe if the three of them had confronted Sasuke this would never have happened. Instead she had gone alone, as if anything she said could have persuaded him. And then she had begged Naruto to bring him back, without even considering what might happen to him. She hadn't thought Sasuke would attack him. Why hadn't she seen that coming? Sasuke and Naruto always clashed. Of course it had become a fight. And after that horrible scene on the rooftop she should have known just how bad it would be when they did fight, without Kakashi there to stop them this time. She had seen how battered Naruto was when Kakashi had carried him back. She couldn't imagine how badly being beaten by Sasuke, again, like always, must have hurt both his feelings and his pride. Naruto tried so hard when he was just doing it for himself. He would have tried even harder for her. And he had still failed. When she had visited him in the hospital he hadn't even been able to look her in the eye. Naruto blamed himself just like she blamed herself, and they could apologize to each other over and over and it wouldn't help anything.

Now Sasuke was here and everything should have been better but it wasn't. She wanted to unleash her anger on him, to put the blame on his shoulders where it belonged, and she couldn't. She was afraid to. He was here but he wasn't back. They needed him to want to stay. Why would he want to stay with people who were angry with him, berating and even hating him for what he had done? And she did hate him for that because she couldn't understand why they weren't more important to him than his need for revenge. They were alive. Nothing he did would bring his family back. He had known that and he had given them up anyway. For power. That was the worst part if it because that made no sense at all. Sasuke had always been powerful compared to everyone their age. Why couldn't that be enough? He was bound to get stronger no matter where he was so why couldn't he have stayed right here in the village? Impatience and greed. He wanted it now, yesterday, and she wished she could hit him over the head like she would have with Naruto and point out how childish that was. Sasuke wasn't supposed to be childish. But she could never call him on that because it would push him further away. Sometimes she envied Naruto. He didn't seem to care if Sasuke hated him or not, so he could say and do whatever he wanted. They communicated with their fists so it didn't matter if Sasuke never spoke to him again. It was different for her. She treasured every little moment when Sasuke gave her a hint of what he felt, whether he was angry with her for not considering the fact that he was an orphan the same as Naruto or admitting to her that he had cried when his parents were killed. Those tiny glimpses into his mind meant the world to her. If she did something that made Sasuke stop speaking to her it would be the same as never seeing him again. She just couldn't risk that.

"Naruto?"

Naruto jumped, his hands dropping and his head snapping around to look at her. For an instant he looked afraid, cornered, and she almost left. But then his face twisted into an awkwardly overdone grin, and she sighed because that was classic Naruto. Even he probably knew those forced smiles didn't fool anyone, but he defaulted back to them anyway. Just a bit of the usual to make up for everything else being so wrong. She sat down against the wall, let the scarred hitaiate fall into her lap, and folded her arms over her chest. After eyeing her warily for a second, Naruto plopped down, too.

"What are we going to do with him?" asked Sakura.

"Kick his ass until he apologizes," Naruto scowled. "And then kick his ass again for making us kick his ass until he apologizes. The stupid bastard."

Sakura let out a choked little laugh. He made it sound so simple. "As satisfying as that would be, an apology doesn't mean anything if it's forced." A glance found Naruto gaping at her. She frowned back. "What?"

"You want to kick his ass, too?" Naruto demanded. "Seriously?"

"It isn't as if I could," she scowled, "so it doesn't really matter. But if you think you're the only one angry with him, you're wrong." She sighed and looked away. "I'm furious with him."

"Perfect!" Naruto jumped to his feet, his eyes gleaming maniacally. "Come on, Sakura-chan! I'll hold the bastard down and you kick his ass until he wishes he had never laid eyes on that fucking snake. That'll teach him!"

"Naruto!"

"Come on," he whined, crouching again beside her. "You want to. You just admitted you want to. This is your chance! The bastard will never see it coming, not from you. He'll never look at you the same way again!"

"That's precisely why I would never do such a thing," Sakura scoffed. "Not that it would mean anything if I had to get you to hold him down for me, anyway. Besides, even if you did it on your own it would just be kicking him while he's down. You saw him. His chakra is sealed, he's completely unarmed, and he's...well..."

"Naked?"

Sakura blushed furiously, and glared at Naruto for making her blush. "Yes!"

"That would be a little weird," Naruto sighed. Weird and sort of hot. Why the hell would that strike him as hot? It would have been easy to blame it on Kyuubi, but even without the fox putting perverted images into his head there was something about the thought of Sasuke getting his naked ass handed to him by a furious Sakura that was very appealing. Maybe because it would be nice to have Sakura taking her anger out on someone other than him for a change, and having her beat up on Sasuke of all people would just make it even better. Plus Sasuke would be totally humiliated and helpless until Naruto stepped in to save his sorry ass. He probably shouldn't be thinking about Sasuke's ass, though. Kyuubi had shut up the moment Sakura spoke. Or maybe Naruto had managed to block him out. He had been shocked to see her, afraid she might somehow know what he was hearing in his head. Whatever had caused it, Kyuubi was quiet for the moment and he wanted to keep it that way. He sighed again and frowned at Sakura. "Maybe we can sneak him some clothes and make him get dressed. Then we can kick his ass."

She laughed at that. She also blushed some more, because bringing Sasuke clothes would mean being in the room while he put on said clothes. She should really hit Naruto for putting that thought into her head. She didn't like being a pervert. But this was Sasuke, after all, and he was indeed very naked at the moment. Naruto was grinning deviously at her, as if he knew what she was thinking. She mustered up a scowl. "Don't make me hit you, Naruto."

"Why would you hit me?" Naruto asked, managing to look wounded. "He's the bastard. Hit him. If we can't sneak him clothes, then I'll make sure the sheet stays in place while you're beating some sense into his stupid head. Come on. He deserves it and it'll be fun. It'll make you feel better."

She sighed and dropped her arms, looking down at the forehead protector in her lap. "Thank you, Naruto."

"Eh?"

"For being you," she shrugged. "I know this is as upsetting for you as it is for me, but you're putting up a good front. I appreciate that."

Naruto's stomach churned. Was she going to cry again? He had been trying to distract her, maybe cheer her up a little, not make her cry again! "Um, Sakura-chan...?"

"Here," Sakura said, holding the hitaiate out to him. "I shouldn't have let you give this to me. You're the one who held onto it. You should keep it until he's ready to take it back. To me, it just makes him looking like a missing nin."

"I'm the one who scratched it," Naruto reminded her quickly. "He didn't do that, I did!"

"I know. You told me that. But he might as well have done it himself. He obviously can't wear it now, even if...well, if everything turns out okay. He will have to get a new one. It was nice of you to let me bring it to him, but honestly, I..." She winced at Naruto's expression. He had meant well. She knew that. "I just don't want to touch it. I don't even like looking at it. I'm sorry."

"Oh." He accepted the forehead protector and stuffed it into his jacket. There wasn't much room what with the vest he was wearing under his coat, and the metal felt cold and conspicuous against his stomach. He should have known Sakura wouldn't view the hitaiate the same way he did. For him, that scratch was an accomplishment. It hurt that Sasuke had simply left it behind, but he had kept it to remind himself of what he had accomplished, so maybe he wouldn't dwell so much on what he had failed to accomplish. He hadn't really thought about what he would do with it once he finally found Sasuke again. Now that Sasuke was here, it had seemed natural to let Sakura give it back. Sasuke would never have taken it from him, but he had hoped he would take it from Sakura. He should have known better. The bastard really was a bastard, after all.

Naruto sat back down with his legs crossed, and scowled bitterly. "Well, if we can't kick his ass while he's naked, can we at least yell at him some more? He deserves an earful from both of us."

"You want to go back? After the way you left, I didn't think you were ready to see him yet." She frowned when Naruto grimaced and looked away. "Why did you storm out of there like that? Even Sasuke-kun was surprised. He asked me what was wrong with you and I had no idea what to tell him."

"I don't know," Naruto mumbled. "Maybe I just didn't want to beat the hell out of him right there. You know, kick him while he's done." Down and naked, while Kyuubi filled his head with all the things that might have happened had Sasuke been away long enough to officially become Orochimaru's bitch. As disgusting as that was, it was also infuriating because Sasuke was too proud for that. Sasuke was supposed to be too proud to bow his head to a superior much less hand himself over on a platter to be used like some sort of...plaything. What was wrong with him? The Sasuke he knew would never have allowed that. What the hell had happened to the Sasuke he knew? Naruto let out a disgusted growl. "That stupid bastard. He's not supposed to be this stupid! I can't wait till he's out of there so I can kick some sense into his stupid ass."

"He'll be out as soon as we finish securing a place for him," said Kakashi. "But I'm afraid any ass-kicking will have to wait for the time being."

"Kakashi-sensei!" cried Sakura.

"Where were you?" demanded Naruto. "Gai-sensei said you were too busy to go see the bastard with us. What was more important than that?"

"A mission," said Kakashi. "Don't bother asking what it was about. Let's go. If the two of you want Sasuke out of confinement, and fully dressed, we have work to do."

Naruto scowled. "Were you spying on us?"

"Of course." He had also been pleasantly surprised by how well the two were handling the situation. If Sasuke's deflection helped these two overcome their differences they would be in a better state to work together in bringing him around. Sakura also might be better prepared to learn about Naruto's demon. That was not going to be an easy revelation for Naruto to make. If Kakashi had it his way, the team would be at least somewhat grounded before all of that came out. It depended on how long Tsunade could keep the visitors at bay. He suspected they wouldn't follow her order to stay away from Naruto for very long.

.-.

Ino was instantly skeptical of the strange girl who had entered her parents' flower shop. It wasn't the pale blue hair, held up in a high bushy pony tail, or the big pink eyes. Those obviously weren't natural, but if a woman wanted to use a henge to look a little more exotic more power to her. No, it was the way she was dressed that made it clear she wasn't from around here. She looked to be about sixteen, but she was wearing tan pants with a high waist that no one under the age of forty would be caught dead in, a red shirt tucked into that high waist, and a short jean jacket opened to reveal her almost completely flat chest. She was cute in the face, bright-eyed, and smiling, but...damn that lack of fashion sense was painful. The girl didn't need flowers, she needed a stylist or at least a friend who could steer her in the right direction. That was just sad.

"Hello," the girl chirped. "Do you work here?"

"Yes," said Ino. She brushed off her hands and rose. The girl had that 'I'm just window-shopping' look about her, but it had been a slow day and pity was reason enough to waste a little time on the poor thing. "Are you looking for something in particular?"

"Nope. Well, yes, but not flowers. I mean," she laughed, "I came in because of the flowers, but only because I thought since this place sells flowers it would the perfect place to ask. Is there a graveyard around here?"

Ino's sympathy doubled for the awkward kid. "Yes," she said slowly. What kind of ninja village didn't have a graveyard? "You aren't from around here, are you."

"No. Sorry!" She smiled and held out a hand. "My name is Botan. I just got here."

"Ino." She shook her hand, a little surprised by how firm and confident the grip was. "What brings you to Konoha, Botan?"

"Sight-seeing," Botan grinned. "I have never been to a ninja village before. It's surprisingly busy. Not that people haven't been friendly! There just doesn't seem to be much to look at."

"Such as the graveyard?" Ino drawled. "What, are you in the funeral business?"

"How did you guess?"

Ino blinked and stared. "Really?" But she was so young! Ino had been helping out in the shop for most of her life, but even she hated putting together flowers for funerals. She wondered what sort of work Botan did. Engraving for tombstones, maybe? If so, Ino hoped her tastes in engravings were better than her taste in clothes. "That's..." beyond wierd, "interesting. I guess." To each their own, she supposed. "Our graveyard is on the east side. I can give you directions."

"Thank you! I really appreciate it." Botan smiled and nodded once given the directions, but seemed in no hurry to leave. "How long have you lived here?"

"Oh, I was born in Konoha."

"And have you always wanted to work in a flower shop?"

Had the girl not noticed the forehead protector tied around her waist? Or did she not know what it meant? Maybe her hair was natural, after all. Ino supposed pale blue wasn't really any stranger than Sakura's bubblegum pink. "This is my parents' shop, I just help out sometimes. I'm a shinobi. A genin." She pointed at her hitaiate. "See? This is a hitaiate, a forehead protector. We get these when we graduate from the ninja academy."

"So that's what those are! I wondered why so many people were wearing them." Botan laughed a little too loudly. "I thought that might be why, that they were some sort of armor to protect the head, but not everyone was wearing it on their head so then I didn't know what to think."

"I only wear mine on my head when I'm fighting." For good reason, too. Ino didn't know how so many women wore those all the time without getting dirt, sweat, and zits underneath them. She suspected even the men had problems with that. It would explain why so many of them never took the things off even when they weren't on duty.

"That makes sense. Thanks for explaining it to me. I should be going, though. I want to get a good look around before it gets too dark. Thank you so much for your help. Can I come back some time if I have more questions? I promise to buy something next time!"

"Sure," Ino shrugged. "It gets pretty dull in here." Unless there was a funeral. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "When you said you were in the funeral business, you didn't mean selling flowers, did you?" The last thing her family needed was some new competition moving into the area.

"Oh, no. I don't know anything about decorating graves. I work on the other side of things."

"I see," said Ino. Was she talking about preparing bodies or something? She probably didn't want to know. She returned the girl's wave, and then frowned when she almost walked into Shikamaru on her way out. There he was. Finally. "What took you so long?"

Shikamaru halted just inside the door, looking over his shoulder. "Who was that?"

"A visitor or something. She was looking for directions to the graveyard. I think she carves tombstones or something. Forget about that. Where have you been? You said you were just going to drop in for a quick visit with Naruto. It's been two hours!"

"I ran into something," Shikamaru muttered. He finally looked around and promptly scowled when Ino caught sight of his face and snorted.

"What did you run into," Ino laughed, "a door?"

Shikamaru sighed. He knew he should have left the bandage on. His nose didn't look crooked, but it was awfully bruised and swollen. And painful, too.

"Whatever," Ino said dismissively. "I don't really care. Did Chouji like his flowers or not?"

"He would rather have had food."

"Naturally." She rolled her eyes. The hospital had Chouji on a controlled diet. He was getting plenty of food, just not the kind he liked. "Did you at least tell him what they meant? I worked really hard on that bouquet."

"I told him. I also told him they won't taste as good as they smell."

Ino grimaced. The first flowers she had sent had been eaten and then immediately thrown back up. She had made sure this batch wouldn't make him sick, but the idiot still shouldn't be eating them. Who even did that? Why did her teammates have to be so weird?

"You should bring him some yourself next time," said Shikamaru.

"He might get the wrong idea," Ino waved.

"I doubt it." Shikamaru eyed the door for a moment before making up his mind. "I just stopped by to let you know that Sasuke's back. I figure you'd want to know so you can run and tell Sakura, or beat her to him, or whatever. I have to go now. See you."

"What? Wait! What are you talking about?" Ino jumped and chased after him. "Get back here! You can't just say that and leave! You know I can't leave the shop until my mom gets back. Shikamaru!" She halted two feet outside the shop, her hands curled into fists. That lazy bum could move awfully fast when he wanted to.

.-.

"I hope you realize this isn't what I had in mind," Kurama murmured, looking askance at Hiei. They were sharing a branch, but Hiei was a good three feet away, crouched on the slender edge that couldn't possibly support Kurama's weight. He knew very well that the distance between them was intentional.

Hiei snorted softly. "I let you snuggle me."

"That barely counted as a hug." He was used to how stingy Hiei could be, but this was just rude. Hiei hadn't even turned into the embrace. The only reason Hiei had allowed it in the first place was because he had burned off Kurama's scent along with the Kyuubi's and he hadn't wanted Kurama getting 'territorial' on him while they were trying to work. Allowing Kurama to hug him was an insult, not a favor. It certainly wasn't snuggling. Kurama would should show him snuggling. "You really shouldn't taunt me so much when I'm in a volatile state of mind."

"I respect your self control," Hiei said, turning to send a taunting smile over his shoulder. "And you value my respect."

If Kurama had been in his youko form, his tail would have bristled furiously. The damned tease! "Just tell me why we're hiding here. Those masked men are watching us now. We could have moved without attracting their attention. Why do you want them to believe we're unaware of the surveillance? It just makes us look incompetent."

"Give them a wave if it hurts your pride to let them think we don't know they're there. They aren't the ones we're hiding from." He just didn't want to attract the attention of the random people passing along the street below. A glance revealed Kurama with his head turned to stare at the closest of their shadows, making it obvious they were perfectly aware that they were being watched. Hiei wasn't surprised. Kurama really was in a touchy state at the moment. He would have to keep that in mind for this next part. "Are you fighting a need to hunt down the youko's host?"

"No," Kurama said firmly. "I can't sense him at all. If I hadn't encountered his scent on you and Kakashi, I would assume he had just passed through here. Whatever they're using to seal him is very powerful."

"They must have reinforced it. His energy was leaking noticeably when I met him."

"Do you really plan to follow their orders and stay away from his host?" Kurama had trouble believing that.

"Yes," Hiei admitted, "because we won't need to go to him when we can bring him to us instead." These humans either didn't understand how territorial spirit foxes were or they grossly overestimated their ability to control the youko's host. He rose and walked over to Kurama, who was eyeing him suspiciously. "Don't get any ideas," he warned him. "These humans have strange abilities that we don't know enough about. I don't mind if they see us, but I would rather they not see this." He lifted a hand to the band covering his jagan.

Kurama stepped forward with a sigh and wrapped his arms around Hiei's back. To the spies it would just look like an embrace. Naturally it wouldn't occur to Hiei that the sight of two men hugging in a tree might be as shocking to these humans as his jagan would have been. It was a good chance to find out if they could sense Hiei's energy when he was using the third eye, though. And he had been wanting to give Hiei a proper snuggle. He ducked his head and bent close enough to snuffle Hiei's neck and the back of his hair. A muttered curse and an abrupt tensing was all he got for his efforts. That was enough. For now.

The youko's host was no where near the hospital, though his scent had been in the area recently. He was in what appeared to be an apartment, with Kakashi and a few other humans. A sweep found one of those masked men keeping an eye on the exterior of the building. The man would probably try to stop the boy from leaving even if Kurama riled the youko enough for it to act despite the seal keeping him hidden. It would be interesting to see if they used any of their strange abilities while restraining the boy. He wasn't sure that was reason enough to reveal Kurama, though. These people didn't seem to realize they were demons. They likely wouldn't be as willing to cooperate once they found out. He sighed in annoyance. 'Once they see your youko form,' he sent to Kurama, 'they will never take their eyes off you again.'

'I shouldn't need to transform in order to catch the youko's attention,' Kurama shot back. 'Even in my human form he'll recognize my energy for what it is.' Their watchers might recognize it as well, but he didn't think so. They didn't appear to have sensed anything from Hiei so far. The two men had exchanged a sharp look at the sight of them hugging, though. It was rather amusing.

'Do it, then.'

Although surprised, Kurama didn't hesitate. This was much better than that bland hug in the hotel room. Hiei was so close Kurama could liberally coat him in his energy. He didn't get to do that very often outside of a fight. He pulled Hiei a little closer and let his youki rise until it wafted through his hair and tickled the edges of Hiei's cloak. The spies stiffened but didn't break cover. They might just be reacting to the visible movement where there was no wind. Even if they could sense the energy, that didn't mean they would recognize it as demonic. Still, Kurama didn't mind if they did recognize him for what he was. Hiei was being too cautious about 'playing nice' with these people. It was only a matter of time before Hiei became impatient and stopped caring. Kurama was looking forward to that.

Through his jagan, Hiei could see the moment the youko felt Kurama. The blonde boy flinched and rushed to Kakashi, pulling him out of the room and away from the others. It was hard to read the boy's lips when he spoke that quickly, but Hiei caught the basics. Demon, youko, hospital, Sasuke. And then Kakashi was talking and that mask of his blocked everything he said. Hiei had seen enough. He kicked Kurama's ankle, which had edged between his own feet. As if he hadn't noticed. 'That's enough.' He was relieved when Kurama controlled his energy. The feel of it made him want to fight or fuck and this really wasn't the time for either. 'He felt you, but there is no sign of his energy. The seal must have him locked up too tightly to do more than communicate with his host. They're not letting the boy come himself.' Kakashi would probably come instead. Hiei could work with that. He focused his jagan on the boy he and Bui had brought back. The 'Sasuke' the fox's host was so concerned about. They hadn't been able to pinpoint his location in the hospital. As saturated as the boy had been when Bui handed him over, he should have been a beacon here the same as when they had originally found him. Instead he was as hidden as the youko. With the jagan, Hiei quickly saw why. He let out a disgusted growl and jerked the band back over the third eye. Kurama must have felt his annoyance because he didn't try to stop him from stepping back.

"What is it?" asked Kurama.

"The human we brought here is sealed. He's a prisoner here the same as he was there. That woman lied to us." She would pay dearly for it. They didn't have to cooperate with these humans in order to learn what they wanted to know. They could snatch them one by one, isolate them in the Makai, and take their sweet time interrogating them. He should have done that from the start. Why had he bothered trying to do this nicely? Even Mukuro had laughed at the idea of him approaching this while on his 'best behavior.' His best behavior meant not slaughtering the lot of them. It didn't mean he had to behave like some gutless oni from the Reikai.

"Hiei?"

"What?" he snapped.

"Your energy is a lot more visible than mine," Kurama pointed out kindly. He hid a smile when Hiei promptly bottled it up. A bit too late for that. The spies would have to be blind not to have noticed that churning black heat. "Now, from what I understand Koenma can't hold you responsible for anything that happens to the human you brought here. Not now. When you first handed him over, yes, but anything that happens now can easily be blamed on something he said or did since then. Even Koenma isn't stupid enough to think he can use these humans killing one of their own as a way to get you back under his control. You don't have to worry about that."

"That's not the point." Hiei turned away, his hands clenched into fists.

No, Kurama thought, that wasn't the point at all. He didn't believe it was the fact that the woman had lied, either. "Why did you decide to take him with you?" Petty revenge, according to Hiei, because he had been irritated by the snake. And a flimsy excuse about using the energy coating the boy to track down the source. None of that rang true. Kurama eyed Hiei's tense frame closely and gave a soft sigh. Sometimes, Hiei was downright sweet. "He was warded, wasn't he?" The lack of an answer told him he had guessed correctly. Yukina hadn't spoken of the wards that had been used on her, but Kuwabara had blabbed enough to give Hiei a raging hatred of anyone who used such things on anyone for any reason. In Hiei's mind he hadn't just stolen and used the boy, he had rescued him. Of course Hiei was furious to see him right back in captivity again.

"Well," Kurama said brightly. "If your jagan can see through the seals then the Reikai can penetrate them as well. Shall we pop in for a quick visit? Having fought with the nine-tail he might be more willing to talk about him than the rest of the people here. And no one warned us to stay away from him."

Hiei snorted. "I was already planning on that. Whether or not I can risk bringing you is another matter." He turned to raise an eyebrow at Kurama. "Will you be able to control yourself or are you liable to jump him the way the youko did with me? I wouldn't want you embarrassing yourself over a human child."

If Hiei wanted to rile him, he would have to do much better than that. Kurama closed the distance between them and leaned down until they were at eye level. "Unlike that youko, I am firmly attached and fully satisfied with that attachment. If you doubt that, I would be more than happy to prove it to you. I'm sure this tree could be convinced to give us a bit of privacy while I'm making my point."

"I'll give you the benefit of the doubt this time," Hiei drawled, his lips twitching to reveal one of his fangs. "I suspect Kakashi is on his way here now. Introducing him to your youko form should prove a nice distraction. If you do end up needing one."

"I won't need a distraction." Though he wouldn't mind flashing his fox form to Kakashi. The man irritated him. Badly. "I gather the boy isn't being watched, then?" Or had Hiei changed his mind about letting people here know what Kurama was?

"There are guards outside the room. A kekkai should keep them from entering." And if it didn't, then at least they would get to see just what these humans were capable of.

Hiei kept his eyes on the two badly hidden spies as he opened a portal to the Reikai. They could have stormed the hospital and forced their way in, but why bother? This should remind these humans that they could go anywhere they liked. It was up to the humans to stay on their good side, not the other way around. The masked men broke their cover, but they didn't approach them. Then flashed off in the direction of that tower the woman resided in. Hiei smirked as he and Kurama stepped into the portal. He hoped the woman went mad trying to figure out what they were up to. Maybe if he scored enough petty revenge against her he wouldn't give in to his sudden urge to snatch the woman and drop her off for a few days with Mukuro. Knowing his luck the two of them would become best friends.

.-.  
TBC


End file.
